By Rachel Schwab, Justin Giovannelli, and Kevin Lucia

Small businesses have historically struggled to provide coverage to their workers, with the cost of coverage and administration posing obstacles. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) sought to address these issues through the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP), creating state and federal marketplaces for small employers to offer employees a range of qualified health plans, and help pay for them through a federal tax credit. The SHOP has underperformed expectations with lackluster enrollment, and small businesses continue to face challenges offering health insurance. To make matters worse, federal actions may drive small businesses toward inadequate or discriminatory products. But many state-based marketplaces are finding ways to serve the small-business community through the SHOP.

In a new post for the Commonwealth Fund’s To the Point blog, CHIR experts take a look at ways that state-based marketplaces are investing in their SHOPs, and how some are seeing enrollment growth and savings for small businesses. You can find the full article here.