What is the penalty for employers who do not provide health insurance coverage?
There is no penalty for not providing insurance; however, effective 2014, there is a free-rider provision for employers with 50 or more full-time equivalent employees. Employers that have an employee receiving subsidies through the exchange will need to pay a penalty that is assessed on a monthly basis. The fee is different for those that offer insurance and those that do not. For those that do not offer insurance, the employer pays a fee of $2,000 for total full-time employees (minus the first 30 employees). For those that offer coverage but have employees receive subsidies through the exchange, they pay the lesser of the $2,000 per full- time employee (minus the first 30 employees) or $3,000 per employee receiving a subsidy through the exchange.
