Does the Affordable Care Act make it illegal for hospitals to demand entire deductibles up front?

[JNinWB]

23. I have been involved in selecting small group coverage for many years.

It is more challenging now, but it has (almost) always been an unappreciated chore. Providing health ins. for a small group has been difficult---balancing the affordability of the premiums against the needs of the employees. The workers are rarely happy with their coverage and the employer is almost always the one to "blame".

It is very hard to provide insurance for lower-income employees, who would (with/ACA) be qualified for subsidies on the exchanges. Employer provided insurance is based on age and number of family members, not the employees salary. I predict that most small employers will stop offering coverage and increase salaries, somewhat, to encourage purchases from the exchanges.

This transition to the ACA (Covered CA) will be pretty bumpy for all employers. Our current group policy extends until next November with a somewhat better provider network than similar ACA plans. But, I can see small groups soon discontinuing coverage for all employees who will then need to purchase from the market

As employer-provided plans become indistinguishable from the exchange plans, the annual deductibles will become the same at @ $6500.