Posted by Kristie Arslan - NASE Members recently had the opportunity to visit the White House to listen to President Obama discuss health reform and why it is important to small business in this current economic climate. Take a look at what these members had to say about their experience and the President's remarks:
"For me, being able to be there while the President of the United States spoke about small business was a once in a lifetime opportunity. As he spoke about health reform, it truly made sense and I felt that it was something that was needed for small business. As President Obama stated, if a small business does not have health insurance for their employees, it is not because they don’t want to offer it, but they just can’t afford it." --NASE member Tiffany Washington, owner of Washington Accounting Services in Waldorf, Maryland.
"As always I felt that the president spoke very well. While I think he has the best interests of the nation at heart, he is still missing some key elements with health care reform, and the tax burden small business owners face is still being ignored. The more the President and congressional leaders reach out the the micro-business groups like the NASE, the more knowledge they will gain on the needs of the American people and the small business owner, whom the President says is the backbone of our nation. The tax relief the NASE is looking for is not present, the exchange is unclear since the House and Senate disagree and the fact that this plan supposedly will save the nation money, is not clearly yet defined." --NASE member Josh Levine, owner of Electra Entertainment LLC in Ellicott City, Maryland."
"I was honored to be asked to The White House to hear President Obama share in person his concern for small businesses in America. He was right when he said health care reform was critical to the success of small businesses across America - health care costs nearly put me out of business this year. I have been a successful small business owner for 20 years, with employees, and have absorbed the rising costs of health care, while watching my profits go down. But this year, the expense went from high to outrageous. Thanks to the help I received from NASE to find a new health plan, I was able to significantly reduce my costs and maintain this business that I worked so hard to build over the past two decades. President Obama is right, expansive reform is needed, and needed quickly, or the make-up of this country will change significantly, as small businesses all across America will crumble and die." --NASE member Tina Schott, owner of Schott Management Group, a small association management practice in Herndon, Virginia.
For more information on NASE's position on health reform, visit NASE in Action.