Respondents were asked what changes they made or are planning to make as regulations from the Affordable Care Act continue to come into effect. The survey found the following:

Annual Benefit Limits: Half of all respondents (50 percent) indicated they no longer have any annual benefit limits in place, while nearly one-third (32 percent) reported that they did not make any changes to their annual limits this year. Among employers making changes for 2013, the most common benefits requiring adjustments to their annual limits were mental health and substance abuse (9 percent) and rehabilitative services and devices (9 percent).
Grandfather Status: The majority of respondents (57 percent) did not have any benefit option in grandfather status this year, compared to 49 percent last year. However, more than one-fourth (27 percent) will have at least one grandfathered health plan this year.
Health Insurance Exchanges: More than half of respondents (51 percent) believe that some retirees might find state health insurance exchanges to be a viable option for health insurance. More than one-third (38 percent) felt that exchanges could be an option for COBRA plan participants while 35 percent felt that part-time employees might consider exchanges.

"Rising health care costs continue to plague employers at an alarming rate," Darling said. "Although cost increases have stabilized somewhat, they are still on a higher base from last year and are simply not sustainable, especially when our nation's economy and workers' wages are virtually flat and everybody is struggling."

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