20September 2009
Why do we have to threaten small business owners with fines if health care reform is such a good deal? When you make health care reform mandatory and create fines for those who don’t provide it, you’re setting up a serious problem for many small business owners.
I have a hard time understanding the logic of adding costs to small business owners who are already struggling to stay in business. It’s a catch 22. You either add to your cost by providing health insurance or pay a fine for not providing it. That sounds pretty much like a lose lose situation.
With the economy still in bad shape, in spite of what Washington is saying, businessmen are still having a hard time. Some that I’ve talked to have had their lines of credit pulled or frozen, even though they have made all their payments on time.
Some businessmen I’ve talked to have indicated they’ll have to lay people off if providing health insurance become mandatory. Others have indicated they may outsource work overseas or use more independent contractors.
The latest bill proposed by Senator Baucus doesn’t even touch on two things that would help everyone including small businessmen. It doesn’t address medical malpractice and doesn’t allow people to cross state lines to find cheaper insurance policies.
When you come right down to it, we’ll all have to deal with whatever bill passes. I personally hope that someone in Washington stops to think about the impact of some of the current proposals. Small business owners want change just like everyone else, but don’t put them out of business.