http://www.themiddleclass.org/taxonomy/term/54 The taxonomy view with a depth of 0. en http://www.themiddleclass.org/bill/small-business-health-fairness-act-2004 <div class="field field-type-legislation field-field-legislation"> <h3 class="field-label">Legislation</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-number-integer field-field-position"> <h3 class="field-label">The middle class</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item">Opposes</div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-video-cck field-field-video-summary"> <h3 class="field-label">Video Summary</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-injustice-facts"> <h3 class="field-label">Injustice Facts</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"><p>Number of middle-class households that lack health insurance: <strong>1 in 6</strong><br /> Percentage of small businesses that did not offer health insurance to employees in 2004: <strong>37</strong><br /> Proportion of small businesses that would see their premiums increase under this legislation: <strong>4 out of 5</strong><br /> Predicted increase in the number of uninsured Americans under this legislation: <strong>250,000 to 1 million</strong><br /> Average estimated increase in health care premiums for small business under this legislation: <strong>6%</strong><br /> Average estimated increase in health care premiums for small employers with state-regulated coverage under this legislation: <strong>23%</strong></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-summary"> <h3 class="field-label">Overview/Summary</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-middle-class-position-ana"> <h3 class="field-label">Middle Class Position Analysis</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"><p><strong>The Middle Class Opposes:</strong> Enhancing the ability of small businesses to offer quality health insurance would go a long way towards reducing the number of uninsured Americans. But the devil is in the details: by exempting AHPs from state regulations, this bill increases average health care costs for small businesses and reduces the number of workers with health insurance. For example, state laws prevent insurance plans from cherry-picking only the healthiest people for insurance coverage, allowing businesses with relatively healthy employees to join for less money, while charging higher rates to those with older and sicker workers. This would destabilize the health care marketplace: state-regulated health care plans would see their healthy workers siphoned off to the AHPs, leaving them with a disproportionate number of older and sicker employees who are more expensive to cover. Health care premiums for all small businesses except those with the healthiest workforce would soar, and companies unable to cope with the increased costs would leave their employees at risk of becoming uninsured. For this reason, the Congressional Budget Office has projected that AHP legislation, if enacted, would result in higher premiums for four out of five small employers.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-related-blog-header"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Header</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-quotes"> <h3 class="field-label">Quotes from Experts</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-related-blog"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Text</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-beyond"> <h3 class="field-label">Beyond this Bill</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-link field-field-related-blog-link"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Link</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-additional-resources"> <h3 class="field-label">Additional Resources</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> Association health plans Health Care HMOs and insurance companies Tue, 25 Sep 2007 13:50:01 -0400 atraub 31 at http://www.themiddleclass.org http://www.themiddleclass.org/bill/small-business-health-fairness-act-2005 <div class="field field-type-legislation field-field-legislation"> <h3 class="field-label">Legislation</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-number-integer field-field-position"> <h3 class="field-label">The middle class</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item">Opposes</div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-video-cck field-field-video-summary"> <h3 class="field-label">Video Summary</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-injustice-facts"> <h3 class="field-label">Injustice Facts</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"><p>Number of middle-class households that lack health insurance: <strong>1 in 6</strong><br /> Percentage of small businesses that did not offer health insurance to employees in 2005: <strong>41</strong><br /> Proportion of small businesses that would see their premiums increase under this legislation: <strong>4 out of 5</strong><br /> Average estimated percentage increase in health care premiums for small business under this legislation: <strong>6</strong><br /> Average estimated percentage increase in health care premiums for small employers with state-regulated coverage under this legislation: <strong>23</strong><br /> Predicted increase in the number of uninsured Americans under this legislation: <strong>250,000 to 1 million</strong></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-summary"> <h3 class="field-label">Overview/Summary</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-middle-class-position-ana"> <h3 class="field-label">Middle Class Position Analysis</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"><p><strong>The Middle Class Opposes.</strong> Enhancing the ability of small businesses to offer quality health insurance would go a long way towards reducing the number of uninsured Americans. But the devil is in the details: by exempting AHPs from state regulations, studies indicate that this bill would increase average health care costs for small businesses and reduce the number of workers with health insurance. For example, state laws prevent insurance plans from cherry-picking only the healthiest people for insurance coverage, allowing businesses with relatively healthy employees to join for less money, while charging higher rates to those with older and sicker workers. Exemption from these laws would destabilize the health care marketplace: state-regulated health care plans would see their healthy workers siphoned off to the AHPs, leaving them with a disproportionate number of older and sicker employees who are more expensive to cover. Health care premiums for all small businesses except those with the healthiest workforce would soar, and companies unable to cope with the increased costs would leave their employees at risk of becoming uninsured. For this reason, the Congressional Budget Office has projected that AHP legislation, if enacted, would result in higher premiums for four out of five small employers.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-related-blog-header"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Header</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-quotes"> <h3 class="field-label">Quotes from Experts</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-related-blog"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Text</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-beyond"> <h3 class="field-label">Beyond this Bill</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-link field-field-related-blog-link"> <h3 class="field-label">Related Blog: Link</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> <div class="field field-type-text field-field-additional-resources"> <h3 class="field-label">Additional Resources</h3> <div class="field-items"> <div class="field-item"></div> </div> </div> Association health plans Health Care HMOs and insurance companies Mon, 24 Sep 2007 15:13:41 -0400 atraub 20 at http://www.themiddleclass.org