Here’s an excerpt from a January New York Times article on the matter:

Under the law, businesses with more than 20 employees are required to pay a minimum health care contribution of $1.17 to $1.76 an hour for each employee. The fees can go toward a variety of health-care options, including employer-provided insurance, health savings accounts, direct payment of medical bills, or payment in a new city program called Healthy San Francisco.

Some employers, however, say the plan places an undue burden on smaller businesses, many of which are already paying for employee benefits. “It’s expensive, it’s unsustainable and there’s better ways to do it,” said Daniel Scherotter, the incoming president of the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, which filed the suit challenging the law.

Mr. Scherotter, who owns an Italian restaurant in the city, estimates that he already spends $60,000 a year on health insurance, but that the new plan could cost him twice that.

"Everybody seems to know that restaurants are really risky business, but somehow, they’re saying, ‘Oh, they’re rolling in it, they can pay for it,’ ” he said.

While Massachusetts health care reform has been successful in reducing the number of uninsured citizens by nearly half, it seems all the newly insured patients in waiting may be putting a great deal of pressure on the state’s primary care industry, leaving one clinic with a waiting list of 150-200.

The reform initiatives are also reported to be way over budget to the tune of $150 million.

The National Center for Policy Analysis has details and commentary.

UPDATE: It seems Canadians may be feeling a similar pinch these days.

* 5% on health care insurance with Anthem, a national leader in the insurance industry.

* 10% on car rentals with Enterprise, the largest rental car company in North America. 

* 20% on paycheck services with TruPay, an Indiana-based company is located in Mishawaka.

* 60% on office supplies and printing with Office Max, a leader in both business-to-business office solutions and products.

With no enrollment fees or purchasing quotas, you can save big when you choose to use Indiana Chamber discount programs.  Just visit our web site for more information.

Utilizing the discounts offered with your Indiana Chamber membership, the average member has realized savings of $20,565.
 

Basically, Georgia cheated off of Michigan’s paper, but Georgia likely felt entitled as Michigan always gets the window seat on the bus.

Personal responsibility will have to be increased. "No one but you can keep you healthy. … People should have the right to know the price and quality in health care as in anything else."

What can businesses do? "Tell everyone how much you paid for their health insurance. Tell them this is the extra pay you’re not getting."

Obesity is an under-recognized threat. Children should be weighed at least three times a year to identify outliers who are likely candidates for diabetes and other illnesses.

"A fundamental change in culture is needed with obesity," Gingrich says. "We did it with smoking, seat belts and drunk driving. We need to do it again."

An overall approach he recommends is chronic disease management, with focuses on early detection, wellness and prevention.

Gingrich is coming to Indiana on November 6 as keynote speaker at the Indiana Chamber’s 19th Annual Awards Dinner.

Coverage is provided by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and sponsored by the state. Also noteworthy is that individual contributions are based on a percentage of gross family income and employers who do not offer health coverage can pay up to one half of an employee’s required contribution.

For more information about HIP, call (877) GET-HIP-9.

Below are just some of the components of the program, which is designed to improve the health care system while striving to control costs:

Leapfrog: The Alliance, working with the sponsorship of 155 Indiana companies, continues to lead the rollout of Leapfrog in Indiana. Leapfrog  is a national survey program designed to encourage progress by hospitals to reduce patient errors and better comply with quality measures. It does this by inviting hospitals to complete an online survey regarding their progress in these areas.

Indiana Health Information Exchange (IHIE): IHIE  is nationally recognized as the leader in applying information technology to health care. The number of clinical messages delivered to physicians continues to soar, with a cumulative volume reaching nearly 30 million by the end of 2007. IHIE continues to develop its physician performance evaluation tool known as Quality Health First.

Cooperation and Collaboration: The Alliance invited presentations from two successful coalitions regarding their structure and programs. Indiana employers were then surveyed about their health care goals.  These responses were evaluated by a task force, and a plan for future coalition activities developed.

Recruitment and Expansion: Initial discussions have taken place regarding a membership recruitment drive for the Alliance that, if successful, will enable it to become more directly effective in reducing health costs and improving quality for member employers. The Alliance plans to do this by recruiting, statewide, employers of between 25 and 3,000 employees, with a goal of new employers representing a total of at least 50,000 employees.

The Indiana Chamber’s wellness program includes a variety of activities, including - for the second season - organized kickball. The Chamber competes against other teams on Wednesday nights. The season lasts approximately eight weeks, including playoffs, and does a great job of fostering teamwork among employees.

All Chamber wellness activities are completely voluntary and offer rewards, including the opportunity to earn a paid day off, to participating staff. 

In a shaky economy, most small business owners are searching for new avenues to be more frugal and to cut costs. The Indiana Chamber recognizes the need to save in these rollercoaster times. We’ve introduced a number of value added tools in recent years to help your bottom line. Health insurance continues to be at the top of the spending list for Indiana businesses. We encourage you to consider our ChamberCare health insurance discount program. Members of the Indiana Chamber have the opportunity to save 5% off of Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield health insurance just by keeping their Indiana Chamber dues current. The program applies for new Anthem accounts with 2-99 employees who are located outside of Marion County.

The savings from ChamberCare could allow you to reinvest the money in a variety of areas. Numerous members have mentioned the savings with ChamberCare allowed them to offer salary increases, Christmas bonuses and reinvest the money in equipment and training.

Membership with the Indiana Chamber also provides you with a number of free services like the HR HELPLINE and the Business Research Center. A discount on health insurance, questions answered on HR topics at no charge and free lists from our Business Research Center can provide a strong ROI to your company in just a matter of days.

Contact Abby Hamilton at the Indiana Chamber - 317-264-3793 or ahamilton@indianachamber.com to learn more about ChamberCare. If you do not have an insurance agent, we are happy to connect you with the appropriate regional contact at Anthem.