John Boehner - 8th District of Ohio

With out-of-work families continuing to ask “where are the jobs,” we know that it’s the nation’s small businesses that have borne the brunt of recent job losses.  That’s one reason it’s so troubling that Democrats in Washington are pressing ahead with a costly government takeover of health care that will squeeze the nation’s entrepreneurs further, keep people out of work longer, and pile up more debt on our children and grandchildren.  At the heart of the Democrats’ plan are a massive tax increase that will fall heavily on entrepreneurs who run small businesses and a harsh mandate that requires employers to provide health care or face a steep penalty.  According to a model developed by Dr. Christina Romer, the chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, the Democrats’ health care plan will destroy as many as 5.5 million American jobs over the next 10 years.  House Republicans have proposed better solutions to help small businesses create jobs and provide quality, affordable health care to their employees.

Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester), a former small business owner, commented on how Democrats’ costly government takeover of health care will harm America’s small businesses:

DEMOCRATS’ COSTLY GOV’T TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE HAMMERS AMERICA’S SMALL BUSINESSES:

• Massive tax increases.   House Democrats pay for their costly government takeover of health care in part by imposing a massive new tax – up to an additional 5.4 percent – that will hit small businesses and manufacturers hard.  The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), the nation’s leading small business association, commissioned a survey of small business owners and found that “the businesses that are most likely to be hit by this tax increase employ about a quarter of the U.S. work force.”  Additionally, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) found that the tax increase would affect more than two-thirds of all American manufacturers.

• Burdensome, job-killing mandates.   Democrats also want to impose burdensome mandates on businesses that cannot afford to pay for employee health care coverage deemed acceptable by Washington.  This will directly curtail job creation, according to an analysis by the Heritage Foundation: “the mandate increases the marginal cost of each additional worker, making it less likely that small businesses will hire new employees or give raises to existing ones in a weak economy.”  What’s more, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has stated that these mandates “could reduce the hiring of low-wage workers.”

• Government-run insurance company that would restrict choice and competition.  A broad-based coalition of employer groups representing almost every segment of our economy and employing millions of Americans sent a letter to Congress raising serious concerns about Democrats’ plans to create a government-run insurance company: “Another troubling provision is the creation of a new government-run insurance plan.  Employers currently suffer a significant cost-shift from existing public programs, and the program described in House legislation would significantly increase costs for every American who purchases private insurance.  We are also concerned that the government plan will not be a fair competitor, and employers will not be able to continue offering their current plans, which cover more than 170 million Americans.”

House Republicans have proposed better solutions to help small businesses create jobs and provide quality, affordable health care to their employees, including genuine legal reform, policies that incentivize wellness, and expanded health savings accounts (HSAs) to provide additional flexibility to small businesses.