A U.S. senator has introduced legislation that would postpone enforcement of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act employer coverage mandate for two years.
Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, also has introduced a flurry of other proposals including a bill that would expand access to the PPACA small employer health insurance tax credit and a measure that would let small-business employers in states without much small-group competition sign up for Federal Employee Health Benefits Program coverage.
Yet another Begich bill would restore the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan program startup loan funding that Congress cut in December.
CO-OP organizers are supposed to try to increase the level of competition in the health insurance market by creating a new type of nonprofit, member-owned health plan.
The text of the bills was not immediately available.
Begich said the employer mandate delay bill would postpone the PPACA employer responsibility provisions by two years and delay enforcement of PPACA employer penalties until 2016.