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→Between 50 and 99 employees
Small businesses can try to save on rising health care costs in various ways, such as participating in the SHOP Exchange, negotiating on private insurance plans, converting their employee group plans into individual employer-sponsored plans, such as Health Savings Accounts or Health Reimbursement Accounts (HSA’s and HRA’s), switching to direct primary care, or using Workplace Wellness Programs [http://www.cnbc.com/2015/01/08/5-smart-ways-small-firms-can-slash-health-care-costs.html].
===Between Effect on Small Businesses with 50 and 99 employees===
Small businesses with fewer than 50 FTE are exempt from the penalties of ACA; however, as soon as a company reaches the 50th employee mark, the hire becomes much more expensive, possibly dis-incentivizing small businesses from expanding their labor force. Firms that employ 50 or more workers and choose not to provide health insurance coverage must pay a tax penalty of $2,000 for each uninsured employee beyond the first 30. Furthermore, firms with more than 50 workers must contribute, at a minimum, 60 percent of the cost for individual minimum essential coverage. [http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st356]. This increased marginal cost we see for the 50th employee serves as the reason why many critics of the ACA believe that Obamacare is killing jobs, and also why many small business owners have concerns about expanding their businesses.
According to a survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management of more than 600 small business owners, more than four out of ten small business owners "have delayed hiring due to uncertainty about the effects of the Affordable Care Act." One in five small business owners reported that they have cut their number of employees. The Society for Human Resource Management also found about one in five small businesses are reducing workers' hours to part time because they are not required to offer coverage for employees who work less than 30 hours per week. These part-time employees are eligible for subsidized coverage in the new health insurance exchanges offered through the ACA [http://www.ncpa.org/pub/st356].
