Health Insurance Costs Sickens Small Businesses

It was not all that long ago that a company could offer employer-paid health insurance as a competitive benefit. Two decades ago as a business owner I would not have considered not providing 100% employer-paid premium health insurance. It was not only competitive, but the right thing to do.

Medical costs, and insurance premiums, have escallated to the point that few businesses can afford the full expense of health insurance so are either not offering it at all or are putting much of the burden on the shoulders of the workers.

There is no question in my mind that we need significant health-care reform in the United States. Health care must be made available to every single person and no one should have to declare bankruptcy due to the costs of a major illness. But let’s not burden small businesses with picking up the tab. A recent news report said that under the proposed health care reform small businesses who hire minimum-wage employees would effectively double the minimum wage due to health insurance premiums.

See this Wall Street Journal article for a report on health care and small businesses.

Will Limkemann
www.siqualtd.com