Senator Portman, You Are Wrong! The ACA Is NOT A “Job Killer”
I am deeply disappointed that the new senator from Ohio is referring to the health care reform act (known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, or ACA) as a “job killer.” In fact what is the real “job killer” is the antiquated system of employment-based health insurance that has been in place since World War II. In the United States, employers pay an average of 80% of the health insurance premiums for their employees (according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute). This is not money that is being paid out in wages and salaries to the employees and is also a drain on profits.
If a company has an employee health insurance plan, when they hire a new employee, the company also has to pay the cost of their health insurance as well. This is a “hidden tax” that the employer has to pay in addition to the wages of the new employee. Usually part time employees are not eligible for health insurance. So, very often an employer will hire a part-time or temporary employee before hiring a new full-time employee. Also, many employers will ask current employees to work overtime or work unpaid overtime if salaried. The cost of health insurance stifles new hiring.
No other developed nation in the world has the business community bearing the greatest share of health care costs. In every other developed nation in the world, the cost of health care is borne by their citizens directly through taxation for their government-administered or privately-run system of universal health insurance. This antiquated system of employment-based health insurance also makes companies in the United States less competitive in world markets.
Rather than being a “job killer,” the ACA is actually a “job creator.” Because the ACA will cover many more people for health insurance who are presently uninsured, it is expected to create much more demand for health care services. Most of those services will be in primary care as those now uninsured seek medical care that they have been ignoring. This will create demand for more health care personnel to deliver those services.
I was a participant in a series of community forums held at Cleveland State University last spring on the effect of the ACA in northeastern Ohio. At that forum were representatives from the major health care organizations in the region. They expect that the act will create an estimated 18,000 NEW JOBS in the region by 2016. Those are new jobs in health care; jobs that pay well and offer benefits, not dead-end minimum wage jobs. In fact, many of those jobs are being created right now. The major problem is the lack of local people with the necessary education and skills for the jobs being created.
Included in the ACA is a provision offering grants to colleges and universities to train the people expected to fill those new jobs that will be created in the health care fields. It was mentioned that the both Cuyahoga Community College and Cleveland State have already applied for those grants.
The health care reform act will usher in a brave new world in health care; one that is much more efficient and less costly than what has existed in the past. As a result the act will spawn many new jobs, including some that we cannot yet imagine. So far from being a “job killer,” health care reform may be the engine that creates many new jobs in health care and allied fields.
Lee Kamps
Lee has been working with Medicare, Medicaid and private health insurance since he began working at the Erie County Welfare Department in January 1973 where a major part of his job was determining eligibility for Medicaid. He went into the private insurance business in 1977 with Prudential Insurance Company and within a short time had become one of the company’s top sales agents. In 1982, he was promoted into management where he managed two field offices and as many as thirteen sales agents. After leaving Prudential in 1986, Lee decided to become more focused on health insurance and employee benefits. He has advised many local employers on how to have a more cost effective employee benefit program as well as conducted employee benefit meetings and enrollments for many area employers. The companies Lee has worked with ranged from small “mom and pop” businesses to local operations of large national companies. Lee received his B.S. degree from Kent State University where he has been active in the local alumni association. He has completed seven of the ten courses toward the Certified Employee Benefit Specialist designation. He has taught courses in employee benefits and insurance at Cleveland State University and local community colleges. In addition, Lee is an experienced and accomplished public speaker. He has been a member of Toastmasters International where he achieved the designation of “Able Toastmaster – Silver” in 1994. He has also served as a club president, Area Governor and District Public Relations Officer in Toastmasters as well as winning local speech contests. Lee has also been a member of the Greater Cleveland Growth Association’s Speaker’s Bureau where he was designated as one of the “official spokespeople for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” prior to the hall’s opening in 1995. He has given talks and presentations before many audiences including civic organizations, AARP chapters and many other community groups. With the implementation of the Medicare Modernization Act (Medicare drug bill) in 2006, Lee has shifted his focus to Medicare and helping Medicare beneficiaries navigate the often confusing array of choices and plans available. As an independent representative, Lee is not bound to any one specific company or plan, but he can offer a plan that suits an individual person’s needs and budget. In addition, Lee is well versed in the requirements and availability of various programs for assistance with Medicare part D as well as Medicaid. While he cannot make one eligible, he can assist in the process and steer one to where they may be able to receive assistance.