Local business owners seek understanding of health care law as specific rules, regulations take shape
By DOUG WILSON
Herald-Whig Senior Writer
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Quincy businessman Mike Nobis went to Springfield on Tuesday for an informational meeting on how the new health care law will affect businesses.
"I just about had a heart attack ... when I learned that in 2012 every business is going to have to do a 1099 (tax report) on every business-to-business transaction over $600," Nobis said.
Nobis wondered what those hundreds of business-to-business transactions have to do with health care. Experts with the National Federation of Independent Business speculate that the 1099 provisions were going to help generate fines when "16,000 new auditors" are hired by the Internal Revenue Service.
Bill Cox, president of Brown Drug Co., has tried to keep up on what the health care reforms will mean for him. He said he and most other business people still don't know much.
"Everything is gray. Nothing is written down so the layperson can understand it," Cox said.
Part of the reason for the uncertainty arises because the U.S. Senate and U.S. House still were making adjustments in the law Thursday. In addition, the law has to be translated into rules by several governmental agencies, and the provisions take effect gradually under annual deadlines through 2014.
