State RegulationsVA specificDifficulty 1/5
Under Va. Code § 38.2-3431, how is a 'small employer' defined for Virginia small employer medical plans?
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why C is correct
Va. Code § 38.2-3431 defines a small employer as one that employed an average of at least 1 but not more than 50 employees during the preceding calendar year; an employer of 51 or more is a large employer. The statute also counts a self-employed owner with no other employees as an employee for this purpose, so even a one-person business can qualify. This average-based head count is the gateway definition for the availability and renewability protections Virginia provides to small employer medical plans.
Why the other options are wrong
- A) An employer of 100 or more is well past the small-employer band; the range at Va. Code § 38.2-3431 tops out at 50.
- B) 51 or more employees makes the employer a large employer, not a small one, under Va. Code § 38.2-3431.
- D) A self-employed owner with no other employees counts as an employee under Va. Code § 38.2-3431, so the definition is not limited to payrolls of zero.
Memory hook
Small means 1 to 50 — the owner counts too.