The Small Business Connection
Quoting the White House’s web site…
“President Obama is committed to creating an environment where America’s small businesses — our engines of job creation — can grow and prosper by supporting small business with new tax relief, favorable treatment of investments, and rewards for hiring. Since taking office, President Obama has shown his unprecedented commitment to small businesses across America” (www.whitehouse.gov, accessed Sept 2, 2015)
So…why are we seeing recent headlines like these?
“IRS drops bomb on small employers”
Mississippi Business Journal, August 13, 2015
Small businesses are being punished for helping their employees pay for coverage on the Obamacare exchanges. Does this sound like an administration that wants to help people get coverage? Is that the real goal? Or is it to punish the free market, to prevent this Rube Goldberg law from failing and to control Americans’ healthcare options?
“If a company has five employees, the total tax would be $182,500. A “large” employer with 50 employees that did not provide insurance in compliance with the Affordable Care Act, would be subject to…a total of $40,000 “Something needs to be done quickly before our No. 1 job creators are left holding the bag and are put out of business.” Ron Aldridge Small Business Impact A March 2015 USA Today article by AP Writer Joyce M. Rosenberg, reports that small businesses face serious impacts and have been spending money they don’t have in response to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The article presented several examples of negative impacts including both overall trends and personal anecdotes by business owners. The article also cites a 2014 survey by the National Small Business Association [NSBA] (www.nsba.biz) which found that on average, complying with the law costs small businesses more than $15,000 a year. Actually, the $15,000 figure only includes the costs of research and administrative burdens though. The report’s authors at NSBA said “the majority of small firms still have a limited to no understanding of how they will be impacted by the law. When asked about the real-world costs of understanding ACA, small report spending on average 13 hours and $1,274 per month [which equates to $15,288 per year] — and that’s just on the administrative side of understanding the law itself.” The NSBA report also stated that “most notably, 91 percent [of survey respondents] reported increases in their health plan at their most recent health insurance renewal with one in four being hit with increases exceeding 20 percent,” and went on to make the point that “These costs have real-world implications…” And then there’s the “Cadillac Tax” An excellent overview of the “Cadillac Tax” is provided by Logan Albright on Watchdog.org. Logan is a research analyst and writer for Freedom Works and discusses in this September 1st article how the tax will work and the impact it will have on both employer and employee options for healthcare benefits. Read the article at ”How the Cadillac tax will reduce your health care options.” “Obamacare ‘Cadillac Tax’ Threatens Millions of Tax-Free Health Savings Accounts” “Doctors Will Be the Scapegoats in the Coming Obamacare Disaster” In the coming weeks and months several pieces of legislation will be introduced to remove or reduce the deleterious effects of the Cadillac Tax and a variety of small business requirements. We encourage each of you to keep an eye on legislation and communicate often with your elected officials, friends and neighbors. VQH continues to monitor issues, legislation, regulation and positions related to healthcare at both the state and federal level. Help us help you by donating as you are able. Please click the “donate” button on this page…. Virginians for Quality Healthcare, an all-volunteer organization, now has the ability to accept donations. This will enable us to expand our advocacy and outreach to advance the cause of healthcare freedom for the benefit of all Virginians. Also, we warmly welcome new members for our action team.
Although the tax will not be implemented until 2018, businesses are already positioning themselves – as best they can in an environment of extreme uncertainty – and this is affecting just about all of us…today.
Newsmax, August 31, 2015
“If the Cadillac tax doesn’t change, FSAs [Flexible Savings Accounts] will go away very quickly.” Rich Stover
Human Events, August 31, 2015
“Despite promises of greater access and affordability, Obamacare has done nothing but increase costs and limit health care freedom.” Justin Haskins
