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Survey: Self-Employed Divided On Support For Health Care Law

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By Kristie L. Arslan

In the wake of the Supreme Court’s final ruling on the Affordable Care Act, the self-employed are concerned about the impact it will have on their health care budgets when the law goes into full effect in 2014.

Nearly 900 micro-business owners responded to an NASE survey that was released within hours of the court’s ruling. With the law moving forward into the implementation stage, the self-employed are, once again, looking for more information from the federal government regarding issues of affordability and cost of care.

“While business owners were divided on whether they supported the law or not, one message is clear—the self-employed are still worried about rising health care costs and they want Congress to act,” said NASE President Kristie L. Arslan. “Members of Congress should come together in a bipartisan fashion to address these concerns by fixing the health care law this year. But I have to admit, I’m not holding my breath waiting for that to happen.”

When asked how acquainted respondents were with the health care act, a staggering 71 percent had some familiarity with the new law. Just under half (44 percent) said they were generally familiar with the law, and 33 percent said they were very familiar. About 14 percent said they were extremely familiar.

Overall, the majority of the respondents disagreed with the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the law, though 36 percent indicated that they agreed with it. In light of the ruling, 87 percent of survey respondents said that Congress should repeal the entire law, voicing concern that the law’s reform measures do little to address the cost and affordability of purchasing and maintaining health insurance.

In a nod to November, two-thirds of respondents said the court’s decision and their viewpoint on health care reform (positive or negative) would influence their vote in the upcoming election.

Comments from the survey reflected the thoughts of many micro-business owners:

• “I don’t think the reform does anything to cut health care costs.”
• “At this time we do not have health care insurance because it’s so expensive. My hope is that with the new law there will be more options and cheaper rates so everyone has an opportunity to have health coverage.”
• “Something has to be done to control the cost of health care and health insurance.”
• “This opens the door to more government intervention in our personal and business lives.”
• “I currently have a HSA with a high-deductible health insurance plan (catastrophic care). My fear is that this will no longer be adequate as the new law is introduced, and I will be forced to pay more for coverage I don’t want.”
• “I am in favor of the law and would like to see more done to make health care universally affordable and accessible.”

On behalf of the self-employed, the NASE will work aggressively to ensure that affordability and coverage requirement concerns are at the forefront of implementation. We believe continued efforts to enact further reforms will allow the self-employed to use more tools to purchase and maintain affordable health care.

You can see the full survey results here. You can also review our Supreme Court ruling FAQ to learn more about the NASE’s health care reform implementation priorities.



Kristie L. Arslan is president and CEO of the NASE and provides critical insight to policymakers on issues affecting our nation’s self-employed. You can contact her at [email protected].