Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 22, 2008

Contact 518.462.2296 

Employer Alliance: Spitzer Budget Hurts Small Business - 01/22/08 

The 2008-2009 budget plan unveiled today by Governor Spitzer includes tax increases for health insurers that will make it harder for business to afford coverage, according to the Employer Alliance for Affordable Health Care.

Information provided by the Governor’s office shows an increase of $140 million in the Covered Lives Assessment — a surcharge paid on every health insurance policy. The Governor’s health care spending plan also calls for imposing a premium tax on some health insurers.

“These proposals are actually a huge hit on small businesses,” said Jeff Leland, chair of the Employer Alliance. “These increases ultimately get passed on in higher premiums, making the cost of health care more expensive and, for some, unaffordable.”

“At a time when many small and medium sized businesses are struggling to provide health insurance coverage for their employees, it seems counter-intuitive to raise the cost of that coverage,” noted Leland. “In fact, it seems ironic that Governor Spitzer would make it harder for business to offer coverage at the same time he is calling for expanding coverage to all New Yorkers.”

The Employer Alliance for Affordable Health Care is the largest single-issue grassroots business coalition in New York State - 3,400 small business owners and sole proprietors representing more than 200,000 working New Yorkers. To learn more, visit our website at www.employeralliance.com.