Small businesses face big dilemmas

Just a few short years ago, those who owned and operated small businesses throughout the country were the perfect example of people achieving the American dream. Now, those same hard-working people are realizing their dream may be in jeopardy as they struggle to keep their businesses alive due to, you guessed it, the cost of health insurance.

An article in the Wall Street Journal chronicles how high health-care premiums, coupled with reduced profits have forced many small business owners to drop health insurance to stay afloat:

Sheryl Weldon, owner of Commerce Welding & Manufacturing Co., saw health-insurance payments increase to more than $800 monthly per employee from about $200 five years ago. With monthly revenue down 10% since December, Ms. Weldon stopped providing health coverage to employees, including one being treated for prostate cancer, for the first time in the 64-year-history of the Dallas sheet-metal company.

Every day, more and more companies are forced to make similar cuts, according to the article,

About 10% of small businesses are considering eliminating coverage over the next year, up from 3% in 2005, according to a recent survey by National Small Business Association.

Many business owners say they cancel employer-sponsored insurance as an alternative to firing employees when profits are down. They look at the decision to eliminate coverage as the lesser of two evils, but they know their decision affects families who depend on their employer to receive coverage.

Some of our previous blogs have highlighted that when employers cannot provide good benefits for their workers, it hurts their ability to retain healthy productive employees. That's not good for morale and that's not good for the already struggling American economy.

Furthermore, the Small Business Majority has just put out a study that shows that more than any other sector of the economy, small businesses could benefit the most from health reform.

It's time to step in and help small businesses subsidize employer-sponsored coverage for their workers. If we wait too long, more companies could go under and more Americans will be without insurance and without a job. Let's work to keep the American dream alive and well.