The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, otherwise knownas Obamacare, set a March 1 deadline requiring employers to provideemployees written notices about online exchanges that will allowthem to buy health care insurance.

But credit union HR managers can breathe a little sigh ofrelief. That March 1 deadline has been extended to late summer orearly fall, said Brad Pricer, senior manager for Employee Benefits ProductManagement at CUNA Mutual Group in Madison, Wis.

“Employers will not have to comply (with the March 1 deadline)until final regulations are issued and a final effective date isspecified,” said Pricer. “The U.S. Department of Labor expects thetiming for distribution of notices will be late summer orfall, which will coordinate with the open enrollment period for thehealth care exchanges. Future guidance on complying with the noticerequirement is expected to provide flexibility and adequate time tocomply.”

Under the PPACA, health care exchanges will come online in 2014to offer health care insurance plans for individuals who need tobuy insurance on their own and for small businesses with up to 100employees.

The health care exchanges are being set up by the states or thefederal government. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbiahave decided to coordinate health care exchanges or health carepartnership exchanges, according the Kaiser Family Foundation, aresearch and analysis organization. In 26 states, the federalgovernment will organize health care exchanges.

Whenever the new deadline will be announced, the Obamacareprovision will require employers to:

• Inform employees about the existence of health care exchangesand give a description of the services provided;
• Explain how employees may be eligible for a premium tax creditor a cost-sharing reduction if the employer's plan does not meetcertain requirements;
• Inform employees that if they purchase coverage through thehealth care exchange, they may lose any employer contributiontoward the cost of employer-provided coverage, and that all or aportion of the employer contribution to employer-provided coveragemay be excludable for federal income tax purposes; and,
• Include contact information for the health care exchange and anexplanation of appeal rights.