Health News
One benefit of the new health insurance options and reforms in the Affordable Care Act starting in 2014 will be the positive impact on the creation of small businesses and sole proprietorships. The new paths to health care coverage will allow more individuals to purchase their own coverage instead of having to be employed in order to receive health care insurance.
A recent report found that the Affordable Care Act is expected to produce a sharp increase in entrepreneurship next year, according to the analysis done by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Urban Institute and Georgetown University?s Health Policy Institute.
The number of self-employed people nationally is expected to rise by 1.5 million ? a relative increase of more than 11 percent ? as a direct result of the health care overhaul. One major barrier to entrepreneurship in the past in the United States has been the difficulty of getting health insurance on the individual market. A pre-existing condition or disability can make it very expensive and difficult ? if not impossible ? to purchase health insurance as an individual. Therefore, many people remain employed in a job that is not satisfying in order to maintain health care coverage ? referred to as ?job lock.? If health care is more portable, more employees will have the freedom to change jobs, retire and/or start their own businesses.
According to the report and this infographic, in Illinois, there are currently 475,000 people self-employed but there are expected to be 537,000 people self-employed after the ACA is implemented ? an increase of 62,000 newly self-employed or 13.1%. This increase is due to the new options for health insurance outside of the traditional employer-employee relationship and the elimination of pre-existing condition exclusions in health insurance. The ACA will create insurance marketplaces in every state where individuals and small businesses can shop for insurance and compare insurance products as well as receive financial assistance if they are low income to defray the costs of premiums and cost-sharing.
In Illinois, health care reform implementation is proceeding with the creation of the new Federal State Partnership Marketplace to open enrollment on October 1, 2013 and to start providing coverage on January 1, 2014. Illinois also recently passed Senate Bill 26 to expand Medicaid under the ACA with the potential to cover hundreds of thousands of additional low income individuals. The bill is currently awaiting the Governor?s expected signature into law. Enrollment campaigns and education and outreach will begin in earnest in the summer. More information on the Illinois effort to implement the ACA can be found at: http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/healthcarereform/Pages/default.aspx and at www.illinoishealthmatters.org.
Stephanie Altman
Health & Disability Advocates
- Illinois Small Businesses Should Shop For 2015 Health Coverage
Small business owners: are you considering all available options to find a health insurance plan that works best for your business and employees? One resource for Illinois small business owners is the Small Business Health Insurance Options Program, or...
- Did Obamacare Destroy Competition In The Private Insurance Market?
One of the biggest criticisms of the Affordable Care Act was that it would be the death of the private insurance marketplace. Opponents of healthcare reform cautioned that the law change would crowd out private innovation in the market and make insurance...
- Supporting Chicago's Entrepreneurs: Marketplace Brings New Health Coverage Options
Finding the right healthcare plan can be stressful, and with all the noise surrounding the new healthcare law, it may seem downright overwhelming. But there?s good news coming out of Illinois. The state?s new health insurance marketplace is open for...
- Governor Quinn Enacts Largest Increase In Health Care Coverage In State History
Governor Pat Quinn today signed legislation that enacts a critical part of President Obama?s Affordable Care Act (ACA) by making Medicaid coverage available to all low-income adults in Illinois. Today?s action delivers on a major priority announced by...
- Illinois Needs A Competitive Health Insurance Marketplace - Sb 1729 Will Establish One
The Illinois General Assembly has a lot of contentious, difficult, and time-consuming items on its 2011 agenda?the state budget, pensions, workers compensation to name a few. But one item?passage of legislation establishing a competitive marketplace for...
Health News
New Report Finds that the Affordable Care Act Will Spur Entrepreneurship
One benefit of the new health insurance options and reforms in the Affordable Care Act starting in 2014 will be the positive impact on the creation of small businesses and sole proprietorships. The new paths to health care coverage will allow more individuals to purchase their own coverage instead of having to be employed in order to receive health care insurance.
A recent report found that the Affordable Care Act is expected to produce a sharp increase in entrepreneurship next year, according to the analysis done by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Urban Institute and Georgetown University?s Health Policy Institute.
The number of self-employed people nationally is expected to rise by 1.5 million ? a relative increase of more than 11 percent ? as a direct result of the health care overhaul. One major barrier to entrepreneurship in the past in the United States has been the difficulty of getting health insurance on the individual market. A pre-existing condition or disability can make it very expensive and difficult ? if not impossible ? to purchase health insurance as an individual. Therefore, many people remain employed in a job that is not satisfying in order to maintain health care coverage ? referred to as ?job lock.? If health care is more portable, more employees will have the freedom to change jobs, retire and/or start their own businesses.
According to the report and this infographic, in Illinois, there are currently 475,000 people self-employed but there are expected to be 537,000 people self-employed after the ACA is implemented ? an increase of 62,000 newly self-employed or 13.1%. This increase is due to the new options for health insurance outside of the traditional employer-employee relationship and the elimination of pre-existing condition exclusions in health insurance. The ACA will create insurance marketplaces in every state where individuals and small businesses can shop for insurance and compare insurance products as well as receive financial assistance if they are low income to defray the costs of premiums and cost-sharing.
In Illinois, health care reform implementation is proceeding with the creation of the new Federal State Partnership Marketplace to open enrollment on October 1, 2013 and to start providing coverage on January 1, 2014. Illinois also recently passed Senate Bill 26 to expand Medicaid under the ACA with the potential to cover hundreds of thousands of additional low income individuals. The bill is currently awaiting the Governor?s expected signature into law. Enrollment campaigns and education and outreach will begin in earnest in the summer. More information on the Illinois effort to implement the ACA can be found at: http://www2.illinois.gov/gov/healthcarereform/Pages/default.aspx and at www.illinoishealthmatters.org.
Stephanie Altman
Health & Disability Advocates
- Illinois Small Businesses Should Shop For 2015 Health Coverage
Small business owners: are you considering all available options to find a health insurance plan that works best for your business and employees? One resource for Illinois small business owners is the Small Business Health Insurance Options Program, or...
- Did Obamacare Destroy Competition In The Private Insurance Market?
One of the biggest criticisms of the Affordable Care Act was that it would be the death of the private insurance marketplace. Opponents of healthcare reform cautioned that the law change would crowd out private innovation in the market and make insurance...
- Supporting Chicago's Entrepreneurs: Marketplace Brings New Health Coverage Options
Finding the right healthcare plan can be stressful, and with all the noise surrounding the new healthcare law, it may seem downright overwhelming. But there?s good news coming out of Illinois. The state?s new health insurance marketplace is open for...
- Governor Quinn Enacts Largest Increase In Health Care Coverage In State History
Governor Pat Quinn today signed legislation that enacts a critical part of President Obama?s Affordable Care Act (ACA) by making Medicaid coverage available to all low-income adults in Illinois. Today?s action delivers on a major priority announced by...
- Illinois Needs A Competitive Health Insurance Marketplace - Sb 1729 Will Establish One
The Illinois General Assembly has a lot of contentious, difficult, and time-consuming items on its 2011 agenda?the state budget, pensions, workers compensation to name a few. But one item?passage of legislation establishing a competitive marketplace for...