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The percentage of small businesses offering health care coverage has withered, employees pay more and health costs have shot through the skyscraper's roof.
Here's how it really works for small businesses:
- You're interviewing two candidates for a job. One is in his 20s - he'll cost less than $200 a month for health insurance. One's in her 50s - she'll cost more than $700 a month. Our current health payment policies contribute to age discrimination.
- You look at your income statement. By far, your fastest growing cost is your health insurance. Small businesses pay nearly 20% more than big corporations. So, you decide to not hire, use independent contractors, or end health insurance altogether.
- You want to leave a lousy job and start a business, but you can't afford health insurance. You never launch the business that might one day employ others.
- You get laid off. You become self-employed. You can't afford COBRA, so you go without health insurance and pray you don't get sick or injured.
- You pay hundreds of dollars a month for insurance. But your co-pay and deductible is still thousands of dollars a year. You - or your employees - hesitate before going to the doctor. Your condition gets worse.
More here.
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I agree that there needs to be a reform of our healthcare system BUT have you read the bill before congress? It promises a nightmare that could be worse that what we have now. Instead of mandating health care why don't they go after the reasons for the costs? Speak to a doctor and ask what his biggest ongoing expense is and they will tell you the malpractice insurance premiums. Our litigous society has created a runaway insurance industry that only cares about getting as much money out of each of us as possible. None of the healthcare reforms address the actual reasons that the costs have escalated so quickly. In order to fix a problem you have to know the causes and address them or we will just be sending our money to the government and not to the insurance industry - the costs will continue to rise until we determine and FIX the root cause of the problem. Look at the amount of fraud that is rampant in the Medicare / Medicaid system - is that what we want for our entire health care system?
I don't have the solution but I know that the healthcare bill on the table in our government offices does NOT fix the problem! It only throws our money at it and in return we will get less for our dollar.
I own a small business and the Medical Insurance bill is my largest single expense line. I don't like it, but the government is not addressing the problem, they are not addressing the costs, if they want to fix the problem that is what they must do first, until that is accomplished it won't matter we will all be paying more and getting less.
Read it all here: http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/getdoc.cgi?dbname=111_cong_bills&docid=f:h3200ih.pdf
Before you jump on the bandwagon make sure you know the tune the band is playing!
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Great article especially once I read the entire piece. I agree that a public health care option is a MUST in this country. The U.S. rank (healthcare, coverage, life expectancy, etc.) relative to other indusrial nations is abismal. The system needs change and a public option is necessary - PERIOD.
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While I agree that healthcare reform is critical and there is a perception that older employees' health insurance costs on average are much greater, research has shown that this perception is a myth. We need to stop perpetuating this myth - unemployed older workers are having a tough time finding new employment and this perception is a contributing factor.
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Excellent find, Maureen.
