Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. OWENS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to speak in strong support of the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act.

This legislation will make it easier for small businesses to offer quality, affordable healthcare coverage to their employees by allowing them to band together to have access to the same regulatory and economic benefits as large group plans.

Right now, small businesses are on an unequal playing field with larger companies and unions. Because they have fewer employees, small business have limited bargaining power when it comes to negotiating lower insurance costs for their workers. Since 2010, the share of small businesses with fewer than 50 employees offering health coverage has dropped from 39 to 30 percent.

Small businesses have ranked the cost of health insurance as their number one problem for 32 straight years. For nearly four decades, it has remained the top concern. In fact, 98 percent of small businesses report that healthcare costs will become unsustainable in the next 5 to 10 years, threatening their ability to survive and remain competitive.

This is not because small businesses do not want to offer healthcare benefits. Small business owners work very hard to provide for their employees. The problem is that healthcare in this country has become simply unaffordable for far too many businesses and working families.

Employers are looking for innovative solutions to lower costs and increase coverage for their employees. When asked, 79 percent of employers reported they were interested in joining an association health plan. We know these plans work. Under the first Trump administration's association health plan rule, healthcare costs for those enrolled in an AHP decreased for some industries by more than 50 percent.

The Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act would level the playing field for small businesses and empower their employees to access quality healthcare at a lower cost. It also represents an essential step toward purchasing health insurance across State lines.

As we continue our efforts to lower costs for small business owners and workers, this is just one step we can take to make sure that more Americans can access high-quality, affordable healthcare.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 6703.

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