Not on Our Backs! Small Business
Health Care Petition We, the undersigned small business owners and entrepreneurs, believe Congress is on a misguided and destructive path regarding health care reform. Various financing schemes to pay for these $1 trillion-plus-plans to overhaul the nation's health care system are falling squarely on the backs of U.S. small business owners and entrepreneurs. Imposing costly burdens on our nation's job creators will impede economic recovery. The punitive taxes and mandates being advanced on Capitol Hill will accelerate job loss, destroy countless small firms and permanently harm U.S. competitiveness. We oppose these costly burdens on our sector, as they will take more capital and resources away from our operations at a time when we need every penny. We urge Members of Congress to vote against such measures. • Mandates on small business owners to purchase/provide insurance (or pay a penalty if they don't) will raise costs, destroy jobs and stunt employment growth. • Raising taxes, either a surtax or any other type, takes more capital from small business owners and entrepreneurs at a time when access to credit and capital remain tight. • Dictating what type of insurance coverage small business owners are required to provide will raise costs, take away affordable choices and hurt innovation with respect to new insurance products and services. • Creating a "public option" -- or government-run insurance -- will undermine and eventually destroy private coverage, and therefore choices in health coverage. Small business owners and entrepreneurs have led the U.S. out of previous recessions and require a stable policy environment to instill the confidence necessary to invest in our companies and hire employees. The intrusive and costly health care proposals being advanced in the Congress are a signal that the federal government will continue to take more of our capital and resources, impose more regulations and recklessly spend taxpayer dollars when our nation's fiscal condition is in horrible shape. This is not good for small business, or the economy. There are numerous low-cost solutions and regulatory changes that will help small business owners provide health insurance for their employees and themselves. Rather than pursue an intrusive and expensive path that will burden taxpayers, small business owners and future generations with obligations that will do long-term damage to economic growth and prosperity, the nation's elected officials need to back down from their pursuit of government-run health care. Provide small business owners and individuals with tax credits; let us shop on a nationwide basis for health care plans that meet our financial and workforce needs; let us pool so we can negotiate better prices and more choice in plans; and improve what is working in the marketplace, like HSAs and creative insurance options, which are bringing price sensitivity and a wellness culture to the nation. Congress needs small business owners to bring the U.S. back to healthy levels of economic growth. During this rough and trying economic period, we are working hard to create and maintain jobs, meet payroll and provide or keep benefits for our dedicated workforce. Please don't place the burden of this massive overhaul on our backs! |
