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Dx: Fear Rx: The Facts about Health Care Reform – Relief for
Businesses

By Alta Price, M.D.

(cross posted at Quadsville.com in Dr Dx’s Blog)

Astronomical rises in health care costs are destroying our
economy. How do the anti-reformers plan to help businesses deal with health
insurance premiums increasing at many times the rate of inflation? One proposal
from Republicans in Congress is to end employer-based insurance and require
everyone to buy a private plan, with a government subsidy insufficient for the
average worker to buy the family plan their employer had previously provided.
True, that would help with business expenses, but millions of workers would be
forced to give up insurance they generally like (except for the cost). Seems
like a non-starter to me.

HR 3200 provides relief for businesses large and small. Every
effort has been made to make sure there is no incentive for employers to stop
providing insurance to their employees. Large businesses with large payrolls
will pay a tax if they don’t provide health insurance.  And the small businesses that employ 80% of
workers in this country will be able to purchase either a private plan or
public plan from the Health Insurance Exchange, with subsidies for many small
businesses with relatively low wages (under $40,000 average wage). Being able
to offer insurance to their employees will increase the pool of applicants for small
businesses, not to mention providing a healthier workforce.

A word on the public plan: if we pass a law mandating
individuals buy insurance, penalizing large employers for not providing
insurance, or subsidizing insurance premiums for small businesses and families
making less than $80,000, we can’t just let insurance companies charge whatever
they want. Through good old capitalistic competition, a public plan will force
private insurance companies to keep premiums reasonable.

Dr Dx

***********************

Here are some of the false claims about employer provisions
in the House bill, HR 3200 (you can read the full text of the bill here). The Truth comes from Health Care for America
Now, one of the lead coalition groups
fighting for health care reform.

“Page 22: Mandates audits of all employers that
self-insure!”

TRUTH: This is not an “audit,” it's a study.
Moreover, the bill states (pp.  22-23)
that the report will “include any recommendations the Commissioner deems
appropriate to ensure that the law does not provide incentives for small and
mid-size employers to self-insure or create adverse selection in the risk pools
of large group insurers and self-insured employers.” This is almost
directly the opposite of the email's claim.

“Page 145: An employer MUST auto-enroll employees into
the government-run public plan. No alternatives.”

TRUTH: This is simply not true. Employers with more than 20
employees aren't even eligible to participate in the exchange, let alone the
public plan, until several years after the exchange launches in 2013. Moreover,
no employer will be forced to participate in the public plan.

“Page 146: Employers MUST pay healthcare bills for part-time employees AND
their families.”

TRUTH: Employers are required to pay some benefits for
part-time employees on a basis proportional to what they pay for full-time
employees. No language on this page or the next stipulates coverage for the
families of part-time employees.

“Page 149: Any employer with a payroll of $400K or more, who does not
offer the public option, pays an 8% tax on payroll”

TRUTH: The payroll penalty applies to employers with payroll
over $500,000 who do not provide insurance to their employees. The percentage
for employers with payroll from $500,000 – $750,000 is 6%. Employers do not
have to offer the public option to avoid this penalty, they can offer private
insurance if they wish.

“Page 150: Any employer with a payroll of $250K-400K or more, who does not
offer the public option, pays a 2 to 6% tax on payroll”

TRUTH: This is false, see above.

Find Dr Dx right here at Blog for Iowa every afternoon this week.