Massive Small Business Insurance Rate Hikes In California. Will small businesses drop coverage?

[Karmadillo]

If only the banksters' continued profitability depended on the rest of us having single-payer.

http://www.ianwelsh.net/massive-small-business-insurance-rate-hikes-in-california/#comments

Massive Small Business Insurance Rate Hikes In California
by Ian Welsh

Twelve to twenty three percent increases are common, with increases as high as 76%. Needless to say, these increases are unsupportable by many businesses, who will drop coverage as a result.

Ok, excuse me, but is anyone surprised? Democrats had a chance to do real health care reform, and they balked, kludging together a mess which was guaranteed not to work.

Those of us with an actual track record of, y’know, getting policy consequences right, warned that Health Care Reform was an ineffective mess which wouldn’t control costs, but too many people wanted to be fooled, wanted to “hope”.

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[xchrom]

1. Recommend

[Schema Thing]

2. who the fuck is Ian Welsh, and why does he not back up his claims with data?

[Karmadillo]

4. #1. He's a pretty smart guy and

#2. He probably assumes you read up on the news.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/may/26/business/la-fi-smallbiz-insurance-20100526

Health insurance rate hikes hitting California small businesses could hurt state's economic recovery
Small firms say they are curtailing plans for hiring and expansion amid rising insurance bills.
May 26, 2010|By Duke Helfand, Los Angeles Times

Small businesses in California are being hit this year with double-digit hikes in health insurance costs that could hurt the state's economic recovery as companies curtail plans for hiring and expansion to pay their insurance bills.

Five major insurers in California's small-business market are raising rates 12% to 23% for firms with fewer than 50 employees according to a survey by The Times.

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[county worker]

3. Is this also in any other news story?