Key Obamacare deadline to be extended

The Obama administration reportedly will delay a key plank of Obamacare that will require large businesses with more than 50 employees to provide adequate health care insurance or pay penalties.
The plank had been scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1, 2014, but will be delayed by a year, sources said. The decision will come in regulatory guidance to be issued later this week, according to a report by Bloomberg News. The decision addresses complaints from employer groups about the administrative burden of reporting requirements, though it may also affect coverage provided to some workers. Two administration officials, who asked not to be identified, said the administration decided to wait until 2015 before enforcing the employer mandate in order to simplify reporting requirements and give businesses more time to adapt their health-care coverage. The White House had been in discussions with business groups over complaints about the reporting requirements, and senior officials believe they can simplify the process, the officials said. The administration plans to invite employer groups to discuss ways of simplifying administrative burdens created by the mandate, they said.