Don't let the bump in the road in the Senate lull you into assuming that socialized healthcare is in trouble. That train is still heading down the tracks. And no matter how you look at it, the model of socialized healthcare now being pushed through will not be good for small businesses and their employees.
First, it will have a huge impact on employment. There was a very telling e-mail posed at Hugh Hewitt's website (thanks to John Wark for passing this along). Here is an excerpt:
Then there is the whole quality of care concern for employees covered under these plans. Take a look at this graphic, which shows the average wait time for our neighbors to the north in Canada. Anyone who argues that quality and speedy access to healthcare are not critical factors for worker attendance and productivity are fooling themselves. Just ask any small business owner how important having a healthy workforce is to overall business performance.
As an advocate of fundamental restructuring of our healthcare system, I have been told that I am naive -- that incremental change is the only practical and politically possible way to create healthcare reform. Well, the system is indeed headed for fundamental restructuring right under the noses of the compromisers out there who have been coopted into a false debate. But, it is the polar opposite of the free market restructuring that some of us had in mind.
First, it will have a huge impact on employment. There was a very telling e-mail posed at Hugh Hewitt's website (thanks to John Wark for passing this along). Here is an excerpt:
Now Obama-care is proposing an 8% payroll surtax to finance mandatory healthcare?! This is INSANITY. Restaurants are built on after tax cash flow business models of less than 5% (which mind you has already been chipped by about 2% for min wage increases and price discounting to maintain traffic during a recession has hurt profits as well). Given payroll represents on average 25% of a restaurant businesses sales, an 8% surtax represent another 2 % hit to the bottom line! The senate version is almost as bad. And don't let the small business exceptions fool you as restaurants are VERY labor intensive, and even a single small restaurant operation typically employees 20-30 people- practically every restaurant in America will be impacted by the mandate. Given that most small business restaurant operators survive on scale (2-10 locations) and again at very low margins, the small business exceptions will provide no relief for the those in the restaurant industry who provide the majority of jobs.The incremental cost of adding that 25th employee under the proposed mandate will create a permanent cap on employment growth for many small firms. Some will bite the bullet and add that 25th employee and face the huge burden of healthcare mandates, but many will opt not to grow. Believe me, many entrepreneurs already are hesitant to add employees due to the hassle of payroll requirements. This will be yet one more bureaucratic roadblock to employment growth in small business.
Then there is the whole quality of care concern for employees covered under these plans. Take a look at this graphic, which shows the average wait time for our neighbors to the north in Canada. Anyone who argues that quality and speedy access to healthcare are not critical factors for worker attendance and productivity are fooling themselves. Just ask any small business owner how important having a healthy workforce is to overall business performance.
As an advocate of fundamental restructuring of our healthcare system, I have been told that I am naive -- that incremental change is the only practical and politically possible way to create healthcare reform. Well, the system is indeed headed for fundamental restructuring right under the noses of the compromisers out there who have been coopted into a false debate. But, it is the polar opposite of the free market restructuring that some of us had in mind.
I feel that the general public may be misguided on the issue of public health care. While in theory health care for all seems like a benefit to society, however there are costs as a result of a newly implemented system.
The popular trend in politics is the shift towards a more reformed healthcare system but what of the downside to public insurance. I myself know that private insurance is expensive, yet I would prefer to pay a premium to not wait in line. I want a quality product.
Another important issue to raise concerns with is the public option that Congress wants to enact. Think of the negtive impacts it could place on our GDP. Healthcare is such a considerable portion of our GDP that public insurance would surely affect it. Granted that the policy states it would be for small businesses and eventually large businesses. I would assume that the 8% surtax still may not be enough for companies to switch to the public option because it still may be cheaper in the long run. I believe that health care should be reformed but I also believe that we should thoroughly think out the plan in accordance with the consequences.
Small business concerns key to health care compromise.
Health care reform will help, not hurt, small business. Health care is the No. 1 concern for small businesses today. The current health care system places a heavy burden on many small business owners because it does not provide access to affordable coverage. Small businesses pay up to 18 percent more for insurance coverage for our employees compared with large firms.