Dive Brief:

• While the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act last week, trade groups representing restaurant operators said the legislation needs to be changed.

• Both the National Restaurant Association and the National Council of Chain Restaurants continued to push for reform of the measure designed to expand health care coverage, which they say will increase cost and complexity for restaurant owners.

• The statements reveal the groups’ frustration that little has been done to address these concerns amid a sharply divided government, according to Nation's Restaurant News.

Dive Insight:

Dawn Sweeney, president and CEO of the National Restaurant Association, said in a statement that her group is concerned that the issues impacting restaurants and the employer community at large have yet to move forward in Congress.

Sweeney singled out certain ACA provisions -- including the definition of full-time employment at 30 hours, the lack of clarity regarding reporting requirements, auto enrollment, the inconsistency of defining
"seasonal employment" and the process of determining which businesses are considered "large" under the law -- that have placed an enormous amount of "undue burden" on American businesses large and small, she said.

The National Council of Chain Restaurants, part of the National Retail Federation, also said that it wants the law reformed. It opposed the ACA when it passed and still opposes it, said NCCR executive director Rob Green.

Still, reports Nation's Restaurant News, restaurant companies have been implementing the law for years now and many are preparing for next year, when companies with 50 or more workers will be required to provide employees coverage.