It’s not just purchasers of health coverage on the AffordableCare Act exchanges who need to worry about whether their benefitswill disappear or whether the price will balloon beyond theirability to pay. New Walmart employees—at online retailers theretail giant has acquired—are watching their employer-sponsoredhealth coverage disappear.

The New York Times reports that in a little over a year, Walmarthas sunk close to $4 billion into the acquisition of e-commercecompanies that collectively employ thousands of workers. And asthose acquisitions came under the Walmart umbrella, many of thoseworkers are finding that their health care coverage is no longereven remotely affordable.

Walmart has long been criticized for skimping on its employees’ health care benefits, with manyWalmart workers actually relying on Medicaid in the absence ofemployer-sponsored coverage within their reach. And while it didmake coverage both more accessible and more affordable for a briefperiod about 10 years ago, that trend is now reversing itself.