While the human resources (HR) community continues to adapt to changes caused by the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), we wonder if HR professionals are experiencing job fatigue in relation to ever-increasing responsibilities created as a result of the ACA? Here are just two of the many additional responsibilities facing HR professionals post-ACA:

- HR professionals are tasked with additional reporting requirements under the ACA, including Section 6056 Reporting for applicable large employers to demonstrate they have met their shared responsibilities by providing affordable coverage, as well as 6055 Reporting (required starting in 2016) to provide documentation about which employees and dependents are covered by minimum value coverage month by month.
- HR professionals are seeing increased scrutiny from management as benefit budgets expand, which is due to the high and rising cost of coverage, potentially compounded by excise tax implications. These costs are gaining exposure at the top levels of organizations. More and more, HR departments are being asked, "What are we doing to control these costs?" That can be a difficult question to answer in meetings that demand encapsulated answers.

As a result, HR professionals are being asked more and more to take the lead in considering plan design changes and technology improvements to gain efficiencies and appeal to younger employees, but only when compared with the cost and feasibility of successful implementation. Finding a solution to these issues can be an exhausting process, especially for those HR professionals who have traditionally concentrated much of their efforts on other areas of the business.

We will be writing two follow-up blogs regarding what employers can do to solve the fatigue. The first will be on outsourcing, and the second will be on private exchanges. Stay tuned.