Does My Small Business Have To Offer Health Insurance? 
No . The employer mandate provisions of the Affordable Care Act -LRB- ObamaCare -RRB- apply to employers with 50 or more full-time/full-time equivalent employees . So , if your company has 20 full time employees and 6 part-time employees that probably translates into the equivalent of 23 full time employees and places you well below the threshold where you have to provide employee health insurance or be subject to the employer mandate tax penalty . If you need to attract and retain quality employees and reduce turnover then it may well be in your self interest as a small business to offer group health insurance to your employees . However , with the introduction of the Affordable Care Act 's health insurance marketplaces and premium tax subsidies to help persons between 100 % and 400 % of the Federal Poverty Level purchase individual health insurance the small business owner 's decision in this regard is more complicated now . If your workforce is largely lower income and you are asking or would be asking your employees to pay a significant portion of the cost of group health insurance it is possible you are actually doing your employees and their dependents a disservice by providing group health insurance as this effectively blocks them from purchasing subsidized individual health insurance in the government health insurance marketplaces . There is some analysis required and business philosophy decisions to be made by the small business owner in making the decision as to whether offering group health insurance is the best course of action in todays environment . You should seek out the services of an experienced health insurance broker who is well educated on the Affordable Care Act to help you make this decision . I am a 30 year industry veteran and Chartered Benefit Consultant , if I can be of assistance to you in this matter please feel free to contact me . 