Better Care Medical

How small does a company have to be to NOT offer health/medical insurance?

I always thought that if a company has 20 or more employees at a SINGLE location, they have to offer health/medical insurance to ALL the eployees. I work in a store that employs 25 people, and only the managers are offered insurance. I live in the state of WV, if that helps, although I could have sworn it was a Federal law, but I could be wrong. Where would I look on the internet to find out this information? I need to clarify a few things...first, my employers own 5 Dairy Queens, 5 car washes, 2 other ice cream places, about 3 oil change places, not to mention the emplyees in the home offices. In my store alone, there are about 25 employeess. What I'm most confused about is, is it when the single location has "X" number of employees that the employer is required to offer insurance, or when the comapany as a whole has more that "X" number of employees? I had to have surgery last year, and because I was not offered insurance, I now have to work two full time jobs to pay the bills. My new, second job offers insurance, but because the first one didn't, and they should have, do I have legal recourse to ask job #1 to pay the bills, and offer all the employees insurance?

Public Comments

1. Hi there. You may want to check with your state insurance regulatory body for further information. The answer to your question may depend on who is considered "eligible" by the state's insurance law. Certain states like Texas allows for small employers to define who is considered "eligible" for health insurance coverage. Again, you should check with your state insurance regulatory body for further information. Good luck...
2. There is no federal law mandating that small employers have to offer health insurance, or even pay for a portion of it. It is an employer's choice whether or not it is offered. State law will dictate eligibility rules, however. Typically, an employer can set up eligibilty to exclude employees that are part time, are part of a CBA or Union or those that have not met some time worked criteria. (Must work 90 days before eligible, for example.) Your employer should have given you an employee benefits handbook that explains the eligibility rules for your particular situation.