At a Sept. 17 Affordable Care Act Workshop at the Main Street Oceanside offices, members of the panel listen to a question, LtoR: event facilitator Cecil Goff of Nationwide Insurance, Angela Shrove of Covered California, Elly Garner of Palomar Health (speaking), Arcela Nunez of the National Latino Research Center (partially blocked from view), and Julie Warner of Nationwide Insurance.

The health care overhaul plan, known as Obamacare is set to launch Tuesday. And even though the new health care requirements and fines arent set to kick in until 2015, many business owners are wrestling with the act and what it means to them and their employees.

U-T San Diego collected the most frequently asked questions that businesses had about the Affordable Care Act and found the answers for you.

Q: How do I know if Im required to provide health insurance?

A: Only so-called large businesses, or those with the equivalent of 50 or more full-time employees, will pay a penalty if they do not provide health insurance coverage.

The Affordable Care Acts defines a full-time employee as someone who works an average of 30 hours per week, but part-time employees do count in determining whether you meet the large business threshold.

To figure out whether you have 50 full-time equivalent employees: Take the number of part-time employees, multiply that number by the total hours they worked in a month, and divide by 120 (the number of hours a full-time employee would work). Adding that number with the number of full-time employees you have, gives you your FTE.

If your company has multiple divisions or franchises, employees in all divisions must be counted in your total full-time equivalent calculation or FTE.

Q: OK, so I have more than 50 full-time employees, or the equivalent. Who do I have to insure?

A: As an employer, you have two options, says Bill Hammett of Hammett Health:

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Q&A: Health care reform for business owners