The National Restaurant Association is looking out for its members as federal agencies start to issue regulations as a result of the new health care act, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

The NRA this week filed comments with the Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury and Labor with feedback on interim final regulations that detail how PPACA affects existing employer health plans.

PPACA allows health care plans that existed on March 23, 2010 (the day the bill was signed into law) to make "routine changes" to their health-care plans between now and 2014 without triggering new rules or requirements.

But if employers make substantial changes to these "grandfathered" plans -- such as significantly reducing benefits or greatly increasing out-of-pocket spending for employees -- the plans lose their grandfathered status and will be subject to different rules outlined in PPACA. Plans also lose status when a business moves to a new health insurance issuer.

The federal agencies estimated in mid-June that more than four in 10 small employers -- defined as those with 100 or fewer employees -- could lose their status in 2011 because they make significant plan changes or move to a new insurer. Up to 80 percent of small-employer plans could lose their status by 2013, the agencies estimated.

The NRA said in its Aug. 16 comments to the federal agencies that the restaurant industry is concerned that the federal rules could inhibit restaurateurs from controlling costs or maintaining plans that they may want to keep.

Good employee relations are critical for restaurateurs, and labor costs are one of the most significant line items for a restaurant, the NRA told the agencies. In its comments, the NRA advocated for more flexibility in the standards that govern when a plan loses grandfathered status, as allowed under PPACA. The NRA also advocated against further changes that would cause a plan to lose grandfathered status in contradiction to the intent of PPACA.