Urge Your Representatives to Restore Small Group Protections to Health Care Bill
For the first time in a decade, we have a chance for health care reform that’s good for small business.

Last month, the state Senate passed SB 5930, providing crucial small business health insurance reform. Here’s some of what it does:

• Allows carriers to offer ONE flexible benefit plan to small businesses that isn’t burdened by all of the state’s many mandated benefits.

• Requires carriers to also offer the full package with all existing mandated benefits.  No existing plan will be removed from the market.  This adds choice – lower cost and more flexibility – without sacrificing anything we already have.  (A recent Moore Information poll shows that 72 percent of Washington’s citizens support this approach)

• Reforms the small group market by allowing flexibility in plan design and rating changes to permit more accurate pricing. This will help more small businesses afford health insurance for their employees without state help.

• Fixes problems with existing health savings accounts to allow them to work better for small businesses and their employees.

• Increases the number of plans available to low income employees of small businesses through the Small Business Health Partnership that was passed last year by the Legislature.

This bill is a major step forward.

We must act now to preserve it. A House committee removed most of these positive reforms. Without them, there is little or nothing left in the bill to lower costs for small businesses.

Please help AWB by contacting your representatives and urging them to restore E2SSB 5930 to the form it was in when it was passed by the Senate.

Time is short. The bill is now in Rules – one step from a floor vote in the House. Don’t allow a great opportunity for real health care reform to slip away. Call your legislator today at 800-562-6000 and tell them to restore E2SSB 5930’s small business reforms.

This is moving quickly. Call now or it will be too late.