ACA's Employer Mandate Delayed

On Monday the Obama administration announced it is delaying part of the ACA employer mandate for a second year, exempting mid-sized businesses until 2016 and giving big businesses more time to ramp up to full coverage.

The Affordable Care Act requires large employers -- those with more than 50 full-time employees -- to either provide health insurance to their workers or pay a penalty. The mandate was scheduled to take effect this year, but the Treasury Department previously delayed the policy until 2015. Businesses with 50-99 full-time workers -- people working at least 30 hours per week -- don't have to comply with the mandate until 2016, under final regulations the Treasury Department released Monday.

Larger employers aren't getting an outright delay, but will have more time to fully comply with the mandate. Employers with more than 100 full-time workers must offer coverage to 70 percent of their full-time employees this year, and 95 percent after that, to avoid paying a penalty.