[cdad]

wait til they see the surcharge for using recreational pot .

Hey hey now. Its medicinal ;)

[speechlesstx]

I know I'm late but happy(?) birthday Obamacare...

“Five Guys: Obamacare will boost burger prices”

“Any added costs are going to have to be passed on,” said Mike Ruffer, a Five Guys franchise holder with eight of the popular restaurants in the Raleigh-Durham, N.C. area. He will need all the profits from at least one of his eight outlets just to cover his estimated added $60,000-a year in new Obamacare costs.

What’s more, he’s iced plans to build another three restaurants until after the administration explains the exact rules and penalties employers will face. The law’s plan to have those available March 1 has been pushed back to October.

“I’m kind of in a holding pattern,” said Ruffer, a former Marriott executive who added that many franchise owners are in a similar situation.

Ruffer was the star witness at a Monday Heritage Foundation seminar on the impact Obamacare will have on small businesses. He is typical of many: Because he has enough full time employees to activate the law, he faces either coughing up the money to provide health insurance or paying a fine of up to $3,000 per worker.

Ruffer initially thought he would escape the law because he created each restaurant as its own company. But the law doesn’t recognize that distinction, so now he’s trying to determine if he can fire enough workers, or cut enough hours, to slide out of the grasp of Obamacare.

He said that “scorched earth plan,” however, would hurt his restaurants, so Ruffer is likely to either pay the fine or buy insurance. But spreading the costs over his basic menu of fries, drinks, burgers and hot dogs, could scare off customers, he worries. He said that the recent spike in gas prices cut into his profits since fewer people were stopping at his restaurants.

And the health care law isn’t only going to hit Ruffer. He’s quizzed his workers to ask if they understand that they will be fined if they don’t get health insurance. Just one of 20 workers were aware of the $95 tax penalty that rises to $695 by 2016.

Darn greedy business owners thinking they have to make a profit to stay open. I don't know why he has to take it out on the workers or pass the cost on to us, the bastard. But hey, burgers are bad for us anyway.

[excon]

Hello again, Steve:

Instead of supporting your argument with some right winger saying the same things you do, link me to the part of the law that actually SAYS, what he says it says.. That would clear things up.

excon

[speechlesstx]

Just pointing out again what the business community is saying. Do you really think they're just rebelling to make a point or watching out for their interests?

The fact that qualifying employers face a $3000 fine per full time employee if they don't furnish coverage, and that full time now means an average of 30 hours per week is pretty well known. Are you disputing that now?

[excon]

Hello again, Steve:

Are you disputing that now?

I never didn't dispute it. Show me a link, and I'll NEVER dispute it again.

Excon

[speechlesstx]

Hello again, Steve:

I never didn't dispute it. Show me a link, and I'll NEVER dispute it again.

excon

You can start at page 345.

Certified Full-Text Version

[talaniman]

I have my own copy so why don't you specify and link the hardships of providing coverage to low wage workers. Those same pizza and burger guys have more options than paying penalties, or cuttiing hours, or firing workers.

For example a 35% tax credit for ALL his insurance costs, not just new ones.

Affordable Care Act Tax Provisions

Small Business Health Care Tax Credit

This new credit helps small businesses and small tax-exempt organizations afford the cost of covering their employees and is specifically targeted for those with low- and moderate-income workers. The credit is designed to encourage small employers to offer health insurance coverage for the first time or maintain coverage they already have. In general, the credit is available to small employers that pay at least half the cost of single coverage for their employees. Learn more by browsing our page on the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit for Small Employers and our news release.

Your burger guy already passes most of the costs for health care to his low wage employees, and most do. So don't holler about his profits losses(?), and not even acknowledge the profits losses of those that help him make it.

[speechlesstx]

I have my own copy so why don't you specify and link the hardships of providing coverage to low wage workers. Those same pizza and burger guys have more options than paying penalties, or cuttiing hours, or firing workers.

For example a 35% tax credit for ALL his insurance costs, not just new ones.

Affordable Care Act Tax Provisions

Small Business Health Care Tax Credit



Your burger guy already passes most of the costs for health care to his low wage employees, and most do. So don't holler about his profits losses(?), and not even acknowledge the profits losses of those that help him make it.

What's all this talk about hollering? Again, I was just passing along what the business community is saying. As many as we've posted about already - are they all just greedy liars?

And just once for the record, I am one of those employees that help my boss make a profit so enough of this pretense that I don't care about the workers. I care enough about the workers to understand without employers making a profit they won't have a job to worry about, and then we'll all be paying for their needs. It's really not that complicated, Tal, we can't just keep expanding the government payroll and welfare rolls - there ain't enough billionaires to pay for it.

P.S. As for your small business tax credit, it doesn't apply to the Five Guys dude so it's irrelevant to the point made. But hey, those small businesses that qualify for a tax break might be able to offset some of skyrocketing cost of premiums since the "Affordable" Care Act was rammed through.

[talaniman]

Why doesn't it apply to hamburger guy?

[paraclete]

I know I'm late but happy(?) birthday Obamacare...



Darn greedy business owners thinking they have to make a profit to stay open. I don't know why he has to take it out on the workers or pass the cost on to us, the bastard. But hey, burgers are bad for us anyway.

But that's the plan improve health and lower costs by driving fast food out of business, in the land of big business who wants small business expanding

[speechlesstx]

Why doesn't it apply to hamburger guy?

I believe he would be past the limit.

To be eligible, you must cover at least 50 percent of the cost of single (not family) health care coverage for each of your employees. You must also have fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). Those employees must have average wages of less than $50,000 a year.

[talaniman]

Sorry Speech the burger guy has other options

http://www.mcdonaldhopkins.com/docum...rs-4208475.pdf

NFIB is Wrong on Obamacare: The ACA Should Actually Help Small Business - Slate Magazine

And make no mistake, the health care bill is, all things considered, the largest income-redistribution program enacted in decades. It collects taxes from the prosperous and offers new Medicaid benefits to the near poor and provides sliding-scale subsidies to a broad range of families earning below the median income. There's plenty to like about that, but also plenty to dislike if you're the sort of prosperous person who owns or manages a small or medium-sized firm. The debate about the broad economic consequences of higher and more progressive taxes has raged for decades and will keep doing so forever. But there's no doubting the basic fact that people don't like being asked to pay more. The Obama administration's version of health insurance reform has asked the rich to do just that, and for most businessmen that reality will weigh heavily on their thinking about it. But viewed narrowly as a reform to the insurance market the law—and especially the controversial mandate used to enable people to get insurance without working for a large company—should serve small firms quite well.

[speechlesstx]

Sorry Speech the burger guy has other options

http://www.mcdonaldhopkins.com/docum...rs-4208475.pdf

NFIB is Wrong on Obamacare: The ACA Should Actually Help Small Business - Slate Magazine

"Should" being the operative word here. Reality is different.

[tomder55]

And make no mistake, the health care bill is, all things considered, the largest income-redistribution program enacted in decades. It collects taxes from the prosperous and offers new Medicaid benefits to the near poor and provides sliding-scale subsidies to a broad range of families earning below the median income.

And who doesn't like Robin Hood. Except that analogy really doesn't work does it ? Robin Hood "robbed " the government of the taxes it confiscated from the people.

[paraclete]

Yes and he is doing it again, what you don't like is they are your taxes and you have no say in what they do with them. Tom I don't like socialism but sometimes it has its uses, it focuses on disadvantage

[talaniman]

Lets not get excited because every fast food owner who has objected before has come out and said they will look deeper into what they can, or cannot do under the new law. He does have until Jan. 1st 2014,

No Papa John's, maybe Five Guys: The Obamacare supporter's diet

But the bigger picture is more complex, and businesses will have to make individualized decisions. Christopher Ryan, ADP's vice president of strategic advisory services, has been traveling the country talking to businesses about the Affordable Care Act. He offered the example of a boutique retailer he recently visited that initially thought it would have to rely on more part-timers because of the law. But then the owner looked at the business's cash register receipts by tenure. Turns out the workers who'd been there longer brought in more money than their less experienced colleagues.

“Health benefit is one of the strongest motivators for attraction and retention and is more likely to attract someone who is going to stay for a longer period,” Ryan said in an interview.

Initial reactions shouldn't be taken as facts at this point, its still a year or more away, and he does have options.

[paraclete]

Initial reactions shouldn't be taken as facts at this point, its still a year or more away, and he does have options.

Yes if he is quick he can get a good price for the business

[talaniman]

I doubt selling the cash cow is the answer, and he would actually lose much of his investment. It should be noted he may have been so afraid of the law that he made some bad decisions in trying to avoid it, more than a few have, and that includes states that used the money they were given for education, consulting, transition for lawyers to oppose the law.

Those that used the resources given (the states) are way ahead of the curve, as are the businesses, big and small who didn't just try to avoid the inevitable, but explored their options, and made smart business decisions and not knee jerk reactions.

Indeed the owner in question managing 8 million dollar (at least) franchise operations has many options he obviously hasn't explored yet.

[speechlesstx]

And in typical liberal fashion you say that as if a guy with a successful business is too dumb to manage it or use lawyers, accountants and advisers, etc.Everything about Obamacare is a mess, the regulations (thus far) are taller than me, perhaps you can explain it all to him and every other business that's scrambling to protect themselves from government overreach.

[excon]

Hello again, Steve:

As a fellow businessman, here's my advice... RELAX. The law is just NOW being implemented. If, in the future, we find out the insurance companies aren't playing fair (I don't think they are, and I can't believe somebody thought they would), then we should PUT THEM OUT OF BUSINESS.

excon