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Health Care Tour: “Seeking Patient-Centered Care”
Small Business Forum
The Issues:
- Cost and availability are the biggest issues facing small businesses. Providing health insurance is becoming increasingly cost-prohibitive, and employees with pre-existing conditions are unable to receive coverage.
Findings:
- Business owners want health care to be a priority for the next Congress, and they want a bipartisan solution. Federal reinsurance for health cases over $1 million received support; business owners recognized this as a way to lower premiums. Business owners also stressed personal responsibility as the cornerstone of any health care reform, and advocacy groups insisted on mental health parity. Some business owners shared their personal success stories in lowering their premiums by introducing health savings accounts and high deductible plans.
- Case study: JSI, Inc.
- Mr. Johnson Smalls (CEO) recognized the need for health care reform at his company because of several factors: health care premiums were increasing by 15% per year, employees wanted the ability to pick their own doctors and were willing to pay more for this, and some employees were worried about getting wiped out by a major illness.
- Mr. Smalls developed a plan to split employees into two groups—high health care users and low health care users. He set deductibles at $2,500 for low users and $5,000 for high users, and established HSAs to cover the deductible.
- The insurance company voiced skepticism over the proposed change because they were losing control over the employees’ choices of doctors. In the end, the change succeeded. The company’s share and the employees’ share of premiums both declined. Employees got to choose their doctors, and the high users of health care spent less money because they were spending their own money for more services. Low health care users also saw their premiums decrease because their risk pool did not include high health care users .
When: March 19, 2008 (12:00 – 1:30 p.m.)
Where: City Range Grill, 744 Spartan Blvd., Spartanburg, SC
Attendees: John Poole (CEO, Carolina Alliance Bank), George W. Loudon (Grants & Outreach Director, Chapman Cultural Center), Beth Summer-Strait (Executive Director/CEO, P.A.C.E. Center), Trez Clarke (Program Director, P.A.C.E. Center), Joyce Finkle (Program Director, Spartanburg Area, Alzheimer's Assoc. SC Chapter, 555), Beth Murff (Dir of Communications & Advocacy, Spartanburg Area, Alzheimer's Assoc. SC Chapter, 555), Mr. John Hatfield (Owner, Hatfield Builders), Jeff Gilstrap (CEO, SYS Constructors), Johnson Small (CEO, JSI Realty Group)