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Escape Plan

With the U.S. Affordable Care Act’s insurance mandate for employers set to kick in next year, we look at how companies are trying to circumvent the law’s penalties. Some, for example, are pursuing strategies such as enrolling employees in Medicaid to avoid fines and hold down costs—a controversial maneuver that has been a political flash point in some states. Another tactic is to offer bare-bones, or “skinny,” health plans that cover preventive care but exclude major benefits such as hospital coverage. We note, however, that skinny plans don’t meet the federal standard of covering 60% of the cost of medical care, so they can still leave an employer vulnerable to a different fine—about $3,000 for each worker who opts out and instead gets a plan through an insurance exchange. Some employers are mixing strategies to hold down costs, and at least a few companies are resigned to paying penalties but doing what they can to minimize the bite.

http://online.wsj.com/articles/the-10-point-gerard-baker-on-u-s-war-aims-big-data-in-politics-teaching-teens-to-drive-and-more-1413975686?tesla=y