Small Business & Health Care Reform
Sally Pipes, president of Pacific Research Institute (PRI) and author of “The Top Ten Myths of American Health Care: A Citizens Guide,” argues in an op-ed that appeared in Investor’s Business Daily last week, and available here at the PRI website:
“Several new studies show that ObamaCare will dramatically increase health costs for most small businesses.”
Pipes cites the results of three studies. One study “relied on actuarial data from WellPoint, a large health insurer that provided customer data in 14 states where it operates Blue Cross plans.” From this study, 70% of small businesses would see higher health insurance premiums if health care legislation is passed. In another study, small businesses would see “a 19% jump in premiums within the first five years of ObamaCare's passage.” The third study “from America's Health Insurance Plans and PricewaterhouseCoopers, found that the reform bill approved by the Senate Finance Committee would result in a 28% increase in premiums for firms with fewer than 50 workers by 2019.”
Ms. Pipes acknowledges that rising insurance premiums affect both big and small employers. However, she points out:
“. . . But the bigger ones have the luxury of spreading those costs among many workers. They can also use their purchasing clout to negotiate lower rates with carriers.
“Small businesses don't have these advantages. That's why, on average, they pay 18% higher premiums than their large counterparts, according to the Commonwealth Fund.“
Is there any question that small business will be buried by health care reform?
More information on Ms. Pipes’ book (cover below) is here.
