NRF welcomes Sen. Landrieu’s health care amendment

The National Retail Federation today welcomed an amendment to Senate health care reform legislation offered by Senator Mary Landrieu, D-La., that would remove onerous penalties on employers who require workers to wait more than 30 days to become eligible for health insurance coverage.

“Senator Landrieu’s amendment provides greater flexibility to employers – especially retailers – to manage their workforce needs in a tough economy,” NRF Vice President and Employee Benefits Policy Counsel Neil Trautwein said. “We strongly urge the full Senate to adopt the Landrieu amendment”

“Waiting periods are an important tool to manage turnover issues, particularly in the retail and restaurant communities,” Trautwein said. “We have one of the toughest workforces of any to cover and the penalties in the Senate bill would be crippling. We don’t need incentives not to hire more people, especially in this job-starved economy.”

The Senate is currently debating the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, sponsored by Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Under one provision of the bill, employers who provide insurance would be required to make full-time workers eligible for coverage within a maximum of 90 days. If a worker is not eligible after 30 days, employers would face a penalty of $400, and the penalty would grow to $600 after 60 days.

The provision is a concern for retailers because merchants have high turnover rates and employ large numbers of seasonal workers. Employers are able to offer lesser or no waiting periods, but are prohibited from requiring waiting periods longer than 90 days.

Under an amendment offered by Landrieu, the penalties would be eliminated. The amendment is cosponsored by Senators Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., and Mark Warner, D-Va.

“We greatly appreciate the care and attention of these senators to the question of how retailers would manage health benefits after enactment of this legislation,” Trautwein said.