As debate continues to rage over the best way to address the problem, it's hard to dispute that the skyrocketing cost of health insurance poses a huge burden for Massachusetts businesses, particularly the smallest ones.
During a visit to Salem State College's Enterprise Center on Friday morning, Gov. Deval Patrick said he is all ears in terms of solutions, but is not content to let another year go by hearing about how health costs are crippling local businesses.
Indeed, the stories offered by the dozen businesspeople gathered around the table were hair-raising: a single-year increase in rates of 53 percent, which followed hikes of 38 percent and 29 percent the two previous years; a nonprofit that had to lay off 10 people because health care costs now consume almost 10 percent of its total budget; and a restaurant owner who's had to accept a $2,000 deductible simply to keep the premiums affordable for his business and his employees.
"Everybody's really yelling, 'Help!' " Finz owner George Carey told the governor.
Friday's meeting was put together by Christine Sullivan, executive director of The Enterprise Center, who has been active in recent months raising the alarm about the impact insurance rates are having on small business. Also a founder of the Creative Economy Association of the North Shore, Sullivan said these costs discourage innovators from going out on their own and hiring people to help them grow their vision.
These are the jobs that every politician, including Patrick, is talking about these days.
One quick and rather obvious fix proposed Friday — and which appeared to get the governor's attention — would be to allow small businesses to form groups for the purpose of getting more competitive rates. A 1996 law prohibits businesses with fewer than 15 employees to organize in this manner.
State Rep. Steven Walsh, D-Lynn, one of several lawmakers in attendance, said he has filed a bill which includes a provision removing that restriction.
That's good news, and so is the attention Patrick is bringing to bear on runaway rates. As the governor noted, it's hard to fathom why insurance premium increases are in double digits while the rate of medical inflation generally is little more than 3 percent.
Whether it is the "soft" cap on insurance rates Patrick is proposing or an effort to bring more competition into the marketplace, it's clear something must be done to stop the insurance hyperinflation that's strangling businesses in the state.
