Introduction of the Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2004

INTRODUCTION OF THE SMALL BUSINESS HEALTH FAIRNESS ACT OF 2004 -- (Extensions of Remarks - May 05, 2004)

SPEECH OF
HON. JOHN A. BOEHNER
OF OHIO
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEDNESDAY, MAY 5, 2004

Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleague, SAM JOHNSON, in introducing the "Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2004."

I have long felt that the most pressing crisis we face in health care today is the number of uninsured Americans, which currently stands at more than 41 million. And the problem is not going away. With health care costs continuing to rise sharply across the country, more and more employers and workers are sharing the burden of increased premiums. Health care costs rose by 14 percent in 2003, and surveys project another increase of 13 percent this year. As costs escalate, the ranks of the uninsured will increase as well.

Today we introduce the "Small Business Health Fairness Act of 2004," which represents a bipartisan solution to this problem. The bill gives small businesses the opportunity to band together through bona fide trade associations and purchase quality health care for their workers at a lower cost.

The bipartisan bill would increase small businesses' bargaining power with health care providers, give them freedom from costly state-mandated benefit packages, and lower their overhead costs by as much as 30 percent-benefits that many large corporations like GM and UPS and many unions already enjoy because of their larger economies of scale.
President Bush addressed this point directly last year during a speech at the Women's Entrepreneurship Summit, where he said, "Small businesses will be able to pool together and spread their risk across a large employee base. It makes no sense in America to isolate small businesses as little health care islands unto themselves. We must have association health plans." The President is right, and we should help level this playing field so that small businesses can offer quality coverage to their workers.

Importantly, the bill addresses both the access and cost issues at the heart of the health care reform debate, giving uninsured working families new hope for a solution that can give them access to quality health care. Small businesses in most states are stuck with disproportionately high costs because they have to choose from fewer than five providers, so AHPs offer them a new option for them to choose from. By pooling their resources and increasing their bargaining power, AHPs will help small businesses reduce their health insurance costs. Most importantly, AHPs will expand access to quality health care for the people for whom it is currently out of reach: uninsured working families.

I urge my colleagues to join Mr. JOHNSON, Mrs. VELÁZQUEZ, Mr. DOOLEY, Mr. BURNS and I in this effort, and to cosponsor this important legislation.