When the biggest retailer in the country says employers should be required to contribute to their employees’ health-care costs, even as business groups are pushing hard against such an idea, there’s sure to be a fight. So, two weeks after Wal-Mart backed an employer mandate as part of health reform, the National Retail Federation has written an open letter , attacking the position. Here’s the WSJ’s story ; here are a few choice lines from the letter itself: Seeing the company in lock-step with the unions on this issue was troubling to say the least. Although the move may provide a short-term public relations boost to Wal-Mart, it could have long-lasting, devastating consequences to retailers throughout the country. The letter’s core argument

is that if employers were required to spend money on their employees’ health care, they would be forced to raise prices or reduce payrolls. Wal-Mart’s own letter from two weeks earlier, co-signed by leaders of the union SEIU and a left-leaning think tank, argued that the current system, which leaves millions uninsured, is economically inefficient. The letter continued: Not every business can make the same contribution, but everyone must make some contribution. We are for an employer mandate which is fair and broad in its coverage … Health Blog Question of the Day : Should employers be required to help fund health insurance? Photo: Bloomberg News

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Should Employers Be Required to Help Fund Health Insurance?