[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 16]
[House]
[Page 21216]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             HEALTH CARE REFORM WILL HELP SMALL BUSINESSES

  (Ms. KILROY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. KILROY. Mr. Speaker, for the last couple of years I have been 
talking to small businesses in my district, and one of the things that 
I consistently hear from them that they ask for help with is the issue 
of the cost of health care for small business. Small business is 
telling me they can't afford to buy health care or they are precluded 
from buying it because one of the members in their small group has a 
pre-existing condition, and insurance companies don't even sell to 
them. I'm here to tell them that we are listening to them and that, if 
health care reform passes this House and is signed into law, it can 
reform dramatically the small business health care costs.
  It can help small businesses by providing an exchange that they can 
access which will provide a bigger pool and shared risk and lower 
health care costs for them. And many small businesses would qualify for 
substantial tax credits to help small businesses make worker health 
care costs more affordable.
  This bill will not cost small business jobs. In fact, it will help 
save jobs, giving them more opportunities to spend their money to help 
add to their jobs rather than paying extremely high health care costs.

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