Small business, big insurance woes

U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Missouri, said Congress might be able to write a plan that everyone can live with, referring to the Healthy Americans Act.

Emerson recently hosted a small business health care roundtable with area business leaders at the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce. Emerson said in a written statement, "Our nation is facing a crisis of health care and health insurance affordability that grows worse every day. Right now, more than 43 million American men, women and children lack health insurance. Their plight affects us all; when an uninsured patient goes to the emergency room we all bear the burden. This is a problem for which we all share the responsibility of finding a solution, and I'm calling on our area business leaders to help shape a proposal that can succeed in Congress."

During the meeting, John Mehner, president and CEO of the Cape Girardeau Area Chamber of Commerce pointed out that for the last three years, costs associated with health care was the No. 1 issue of concern in a Chamber membership survey.

A key feature of the Act would prevent people from being "dropped" from coverage, regardless of changes in employment income or marital status. The program provides incentives for consumers to demand lower-cost health coverage to control cost growth. Administration would be streamlined by organizing plan selection through Health Help Agencies. There would be no income-testing at the point of enrollment and no changes in coverage due to job changes in family status. All would be enrolled in a private health plan. People would be able to enroll in an HHA plan regardless of the amount of the premium they pay.

"It does need work," said Emerson, adding that it is at an entry-level stage. "I don't think you could write something without input."

She made note that it's not her plan, but the plan.

The program would cover 246.8 million people; over 99 percent of Americans would have coverage. National health spending, projected to be $2.3 trillion in 2007, could decline by $4.5 billion despite the expansion in private coverage, due to savings in administration and increased price competition for insurance.

"Every first-world country runs on the back of the middle class," said Dr. John Mackel, president of the Continental Wound Center in Cape Girardeau. "You're going to pay more tax to give them cheaper health care."

Mackel added that people want universal health care but taxing the rich isn't the answer because there aren't enough rich people, and the rich are already taxed heavily. The poor obviously don't get taxed, he said.

"Rather than reinvent the wheel, let's look at the pros and cons of other countries health care systems and get some ideas," said Mackel, suggesting that the people who spend their life studying health care should be paid to come up with a plan.

"I think it's too important to be a political issue, even though it is. We need to go far beyond congressional race. It will change the way the system works for years."

Health care is the big issue for the next public election. Each party will have their proposals, but Emerson said something needs to be done sooner.

Emerson invited all the business leaders in attendance, including Mackel, to send her their ideas to improve the proposal.