By: Mike Cavosie
Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) require covered employers to provide each employee a written notice regarding the ACA. The notice deadline is October 1, 2013, and employees hired after that date must be provided the notice at the time of hiring.
The FLSA generally covers employers who are engaged in, or produce goods for, interstate commerce, of not less than $500,000. The Department of Labor explains that the ACA notice must inform the employee:
- of the existence of the Marketplace (referred to in the statute as the Exchange) including a description of the services provided by the Marketplace, and the manner in which the employee may contact the Marketplace to request assistance;
- if the employer plan’s share of the total allowed costs of benefits provided under the plan is less than 60 percent of such costs, that the employee may be eligible for a premium tax credit under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code (the Code) if the employee purchases a qualified health plan through the Marketplace; and
- if the employee purchases a qualified health plan through the Marketplace, the employee may lose the employer contribution (if any) to any health benefits plan offered by the employer and that all or a portion of such contribution may be excludable from income for Federal income tax purposes.
Model notices drafted by the Department of Labor can be found here: Department of Labor ACA Resource Page