Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Senate proposes assessments to ensure health coverage for workers - Pittsburgh Business Times:

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Businesses with 25 employees or more woulde be required to offerhealthh insurance, paying at least 60 percenf of premiums, or be assessed $750 per year for each full-tim worker by the federal A “play or pay” employer mandate has been looming for but Democrats on the Senate Health, Education, Laborf and Pensions Committee finallty defined how small a business would need to be in ordet to be exempt from the requirement. Most businesse groups oppose requiring employers to providw health care or pay a fee to thegovernmengt — even if there is an exemption for smallo businesses. They contend it would kill jobs and hurt businessed that are struggling to survive in atough economy.
they say the mandate would do nothing to address the underlyingyproblem — that health care costzs too much. Reduce the pricde of health insurance, they argue, and more businesseas would provide it. Tom Kentucky state director forthe , said increased competition among insurers would drive down costs. This could be achieved, he said, by establishingy a national set of standards and allowing insurance to be purchased acrossstated lines. Although NFIB members typically have 15 orfewerr employees, Underwood said the NFIB still is concerned abouty the 25-employee threshold.
“We’re alwayes concerned about those threshold numberx because they could very easily be loweredeven further,” he Bryan Sunderland, director of public affairs for the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber has not takejn a definitive stance on the “plauy or pay” legislation because it, along with other pieces of healt h care legislation being considered by remain “moving targets.” “It’s really premature to say wherse the business community’s going to stand, overall,” he “What we’re absolutely certain aboug is that we want a seat at the table.
” The chambefr is following the matter closely, Sunderland said, addinyg that, “obviously, we have members that are concerned.” A poll takejn by the state chambefr last year showed that about half of the poll’s 600 respondentsz had reduced health coverage for employees in recent yeard through such means as raising deductibles or payinhg less for prescription drugs, Sunderlan d said. Nearly one-fourth, or 24 percent, of respondenta were able to maintain thei level of benefit coveragfor employees. About five percent coulxd not afford to provide coverageto employees, Sunderlands said.
Imposing a mandate to provide healtbh coverage, or a fee for those that don’t, coulsd have an adverse impact on employment for businesses that alreadygare struggling, he said. But the true impact of any suchlegislation won’rt be known until lated this year, once the Senate reconciles its proposals and comes to terms with the Housr on a final bill. “I think everybody is lookiny at it with the thought that something needs to be Sunderland said. “I think the general consensus isthat there’xs some sort of reform needed. But the mechanics and specifics of that I think, are really up for debate.
“And there’s a lot of employerws that are, rightly, very concernefd that what they’re asked to do may be very difficult to do and may impacgtheir businesses’ bottom line.” Norman a majority owner in Louisville-basedf technology firm , said theree are aspects of the legislation that sound appealing. For an annual fee of $750 per employee could result in savingx of40 percent, compared with what his compan currently spends on health insurance for

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