Workers Still Threatened by Obamacare Penalty

Even as employers get a reprieve

Employers got a one year reprieve from having to offer health insurance. But workers at these companies still have to get coverage or pay a penalty.

That will leave about a million people scrambling to get covered to meet the Obamacare requirements, according to new estimates from the Urban Institute. About 700,000 of them will move into the individual exchange, shift to Medicaid or find insurance elsewhere.

But 300,000 would be left uninsured, the think tank projects. Many would be subject to penalties—$95 per adult or 1% of family income, whichever is greater, next year—unless they are very low-income.