Few Obamacare Waivers for Colorado Businesses

Firms may be too overwhelmed by the overall program to apply

A controversial provision of Obamacare that allows a host of unions and governments around the country to opt out of one of the health-care measure's costlier provisions has had relatively few takers among employers in Colorado, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services statistics.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 phases out annual and lifetime limits imposed by health plans on the benefits they pay out on behalf of their members. Acknowledging the limits have helped insurers control health-care costs, the Health and Human Services Department has granted U.S. employers temporary waivers from the ban if they can show "compliance would result in a significant decrease in access to benefits or a significant increase in premiums."