Obamacare becomes the law of the land, with much of the law becoming effective on Jan. 1, 2014, but looming questions about the reform’s implementation and the effects it will have on business have been swirling through Main Streets all over the country.
Under Obamacare, states have to decide whether to create state-run programs allowing people to select their health insurance coverage from an online marketplace or whether states will expand Medicaid coverage for low-income Americans.
"The fighting is far from over but there are very limited avenues for Congress, particularly the House, to make changes. They can delay, but I don't think they can delay infinitely," Les Funtleyder, president and fund manager of Polliwog Investment Advisors and author of the book “Healthcare Investing,” told Yahoo.
Editor's Note: Obama Donor Banned This Video But You Can Watch it Here
Hospitals and insurers will likely increase marketing and outreach programs to attract new customers, he noted, as millions of Americans will be joining the ranks of the insured.
However, the cost of insuring workers with pre-existing medical conditions could prove devastating for insurers, Funtleyder said.
Medium-size businesses — those with 101 to 1,000 employees — will see costs increase under the healthcare reform law to the tune of 4.6 percent per worker, according to a study from the left-leaning Urban Institute.
The increases reflect expanded coverage for employees that will affect 9.5 percent of these companies. Another 5 percent will be penalized for failing to provide health insurance coverage for their employees, according to the report.
To be sure, these estimates don’t account for Obamacare’s cost-containment provisions related to Medicare, which might help slow healthcare cost increases. And the study says that costs won’t rise for large businesses or small businesses.
That may be news to Darden Restaurants, owner of Olive Garden and Red Lobster, which is switching more workers to part-time thanks to the costs of Obamacare.
Editor's Note: Obama Donor Banned This Video But You Can Watch it Here
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