[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 52 (Thursday, April 3, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S2426]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 SMALL BUSINESS HEALTH PLAN ACT OF 2008

  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I wish to discuss the cost of health care 
and what the Senate can do this year to make health care more 
affordable for America's working families.
  Last summer I introduced a bill, Ten Steps to Transform Healthcare in 
America, which if enacted would provide every American with private 
health insurance. To help spread the word and get some suggestions and 
comments from the people of Wyoming, I took it on the road and headed 
throughout our State, making 10 stops to talk about my bill, Ten Steps 
to Transform Healthcare in America.
  I designed Ten Steps to be an evolving product, something that could 
be moved in pieces. I have found that Congress isn't very successful 
doing things in a revolutionary way. I believe we can have success and 
accomplish real health care reform in an evolutionary fashion.
  In just over 3 days we traveled over 1,200 miles, visited 10 towns, 
and met with hundreds of Wyoming folks. They all had one message for 
us--they are worried about their health care, and so am I. Of all of 
the Ten Steps, one in particular created a host of comments and 
support: Step No. 4, Small Business Health Plans. You see, 70 percent 
of the people in Wyoming work for small businesses. They experience 
firsthand the challenges of finding affordable health insurance and 
keeping it.
  So today I am introducing Step 4 of my Ten Steps bill, the Small 
Business Health Plans Act of 2008, to give a special level of focus to 
the need to find a way to help small businesses stem the tide of rising 
health care costs. They simply cannot keep up with the increases and 
are clamoring for us in the Senate to do something, anything, to help. 
And do it now.
  Small Business Health Plans is something I have been working on for a 
while with my friend, Senator Ben Nelson. I want to thank Senator 
Nelson for his leadership and expertise in this matter and for his 
steadfast support.
  Step 4, the Small Business Health Plans Act, will reduce the cost of 
health care, especially for America's small business owners and working 
families. Today, of the 46 million people without health insurance in 
this country, 12 million people own or work for small businesses or 
live in families that depend on small business wages. Another 5 million 
are self-employed. That makes 17 million people who can't afford decent 
health insurance right now and would be helped by this bill.
  Small Business Health Plans, SBHPs, will allow business and trade 
associations to band their members together across State lines and 
offer group health coverage to their employees. By banding groups of 
small businesses together on a regional or national basis, SBHPs create 
real purchasing power that small businesses could never have on their 
own. This purchasing power will allow them to negotiate for better 
prices and greater benefits. Just like big businesses do.
  A report prepared by an independent analyst found that Small Business 
Health Plans would reduce health insurance costs for small business by 
12 percent--in today's dollars, about $1,000 per employee--and would 
reduce the number of uninsured in working families by 8 percent, or 
approximately 1 million people. That is real relief.
  The American people overwhelmingly support giving small businesses 
the same power that big companies have to negotiate for better benefits 
and better prices. And small business owners for years have been asking 
for the power that big businesses have, so they can secure affordable 
health care for their employees and their families.
  Every day, emergency rooms treat more than 30,000 uninsured Americans 
who work for or depend on small businesses. That is at least 30,000 
reasons why we need to get something done now to help create 
affordable, market-based choices for America's small businesses and 
working families.
  I am a former small business owner, and I know something about the 
struggle to provide affordable health coverage to my own family and to 
my ``work family.'' And Senator Nelson is a former State insurance 
commissioner, so he knows something about the importance of protecting 
consumers.
  I also want to thank Senator Gregg for his leadership on this issue. 
Senator Gregg has worked very hard to help find relief for small 
businesses, and I very much appreciate his support and thank him for 
being a cosponsor of this important legislation.
  Let's take the first step toward more affordable health care for all 
Americans by giving small business owners the power to create Small 
Business Health Plans for themselves, their families, and their 
workers. Let's give them the change they are seeking instead of ``more 
of the same'' or more excuses for not acting.
  I believe we can agree on 80 percent of the issues and on 80 percent 
of each issue. If we focus on that 80 percent, we can get things done. 
I have been and will continue to work with my colleagues and 
stakeholders to find that 80 percent on Small Business Health Plans to 
provide real relief for America's working families. The time for action 
is now.

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