Employers devise strategies to avoid Obamacare fines

With large companies facing potential fines next year for not offering health insurance, some are looking at approaches such as enrolling employees in Medicaid, reports The Wall Street Journal. Meanwhile, the federal government posts a notice Tuesday saying that it will continue to fund an optional health insurance program for the working poor in 2016.

The Wall Street Journal: Companies Try To Escape Health Law's Penalties
With companies set to face fines next year for not complying with the new mandate to offer health insurance, some are pursuing strategies like enrolling employees in Medicaid to avoid penalties and hold down costs. The health law's penalties, which can amount to about $2,000 per employee, were supposed to start this year, but the Obama administration delayed them until 2015, when they take effect for firms that employ at least 100 people (Wilde Mathews and Jargon, 10/21).

Modern Healthcare: Feds Outline Plan To Pay States For Basic Health Program In 2016
The federal government will continue to fund an optional health insurance program for the working poor in 2016 with the methodology it used for 2015, according to a proposed notice from the CMS. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act established the Basic Health Program. The initiative is a form of managed care that gives people younger than 65 who earn between 138% and 200% of the federal poverty level and are not otherwise eligible for Medicaid a chance to obtain affordable health coverage. The Basic Health Program is voluntary, and it's an alternative to the widely followed insurance marketplaces. States that move forward with the Basic Health Program must offer plans that at least cover the 10 essential health benefits required by the healthcare law, such as hospitalization, lab tests and mental health services (Herman, 10/21).