To Your Health
As health care makes its way around Congress, it’s worth noting that nobody has a higher stake in health care than entrepreneurs and small business types. Nationwide, about 15% of people don’t have health care, and 63% of these people are self-employed or work for small businesses.
Where I sit, my generation consists largely of well-educated yet risk-averse 20-somethings. In this crowd, a job doesn’t count unless it comes with health care, and the minority who forego these benefits to pursue entrepreneurial ventures are insane (in my case, guilty as charged.) I think it’s a shame that much of this talent pool has quarantined themselves from the most exciting scene in the world. Small startups could really benefit by having these bright young folk pushing innovative ideas, making mistakes, and getting their hands dirty before their lives get too settled.
A well-drafted health care plan would be a boon. Providing a basic plan on the cheap could meet the sparse health care needs of our younger generation and give people a bit more breathing room to learn to bootstrap. Pre-funded startups would have an easier time convincing talented workers to jump ship for start-up land, and more creative business ideas would see the light of day.
Of course, a significant chunk of the population will always be too tepid to ever surrender the comfortable K-Cup coffee lifestyle large corporations provide. I nonetheless suspect we would see enough movement at the margins to add a number of great new voices to our culture.
The small business community should openly embrace any universal health care plan that does not mandate small businesses shoulder the burden. We have everything to gain from the creation of an affordable alternative to the crippling health care cost of hiring an employee.
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