Unable to establish exchanges in 3 years, the Obama administration is delaying parts the Affordable Healthcare Act (ObamaCare) in the program advertised to provide affordable health insurance to small businesses and their employees — a major selling point for the health care legislation.
Supporters of the health care law said they were disappointed by the turn of events.
The administration cited “operational challenges†as a reason for the delay. As a result, it said, most small employers buying insurance through an exchange will offer just a single health plan to their workers next year.
Exchanges are scheduled to start enrolling people on Oct. 1, for coverage that begins in January. However, the administration said the government and insurers needed “additional time to prepare for an employee choice model†of the type envisioned in the law signed three years ago by President Obama.
