BRIEF: iCan Benefit Group to close call center, lay off 23

July 15--The iCan Benefit Group, seller of health care insurance, is laying off about 23 workers and closing its Miramar office to consolidate operations at the Boca Raton headquarters, an executive said Monday.

Just last year, iCan announced it would hire 130 health insurance agents at its new 10,000-square- foot Miramar call center. But the company found that the Affordable Care Act has made buying health care insurance more of a seasonal activity, with most people selecting policies at the first of the year to meet the law's deadline, said Tim Moore, iCan's executive vice president for corporate development.

"The demand is not straight-lined," he said, forcing iCan to cut back on the 23 employees and close its Miramar facilities.

Some 68 employees at iCan's Miramar call center will now work out of the Boca Raton office, Moore said.

The 9-year-old company filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Notice with the state on Monday, saying the layoffs will be Friday.

[email protected] or Twitter @donnagehrke

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