New Republican law proving bad for rural businesses
By Rep. John Martin
(D-Eagle Lake)
Last month the controversial new Republican health care law went into effect. Already businesses and families in rural Maine are seeing the negative impact. I strongly opposed this law when the bill was first introduced.
We are hearing reports from small businesses in rural Maine that are seeing their health insurance costs go up more than 60 percent. In Aroostook, Hancock, and Washington counties, insurance premiums will rise more than 60 or 70 percent. One company in Presque Isle may see an increase of 90 percent.
Businesses across rural Maine with older and sicker workforces are reporting bigger rate increases compared to past years. So why are the rates going up?
The Republican insurance overhaul allows insurance companies selling individual policies to set rates based on age at up to five times higher than the lowest rate. And, most troubling, there are no limits on rate changes depending on where you live, or what kind of job you have. If you are a 50-year-old logger in Allagash, you will see your rates go up. If you operate a small company based north of Bangor with employees age 48 or older, your rates will go up.
In a state with the oldest population and where 90 percent of our businesses have less than 20 employees, this is not good policy.
Worst of all the law repeals rules that limit how far an insurance company can ask policyholders to travel to get care in network. Insurance companies will now be able to offer incentives for sick people in Fort Kent to travel to Bangor to get care. Making a visit to the local doctor closer to home more expensive.
The law also creates a reinsurance pool controlled almost completely by insurance companies that will be paid for with a new tax on every insurance holder in your household.
Democrats in the Legislature opposed this law for many reasons. We feared it would drive up costs for small businesses in rural Maine. We feared it would hurt people living in rural Maine. We feared it would hurt anyone over the age of 48.
When the law was debated in the Legislature, Republicans would not give the state Bureau of Insurance time to provide an updated analysis of its impact. However, an analysis of a similar proposal from 2007 showed the measure could cause health care rates in rural Maine to go up at least 20 percent. Now, we see the reality may be even worse than the initial estimates.
Even the governor recently admitted the law was hurting some businesses during a recent visit in Portland. He said the law had created some “winners and losers.”
That’s because larger business and families in the south, where the population is younger and has greater access to care, will see their insurance premiums go down or increase at lower rates. Younger Mainers living in the south will see lower costs from the Republican plan, while older, sicker people or people with higher-risk jobs will literally pay the price.
Make no mistake; Gov. LePage and Republicans in the Legislature have turned their backs on rural Maine with this new law.
Please contact me to tell me how your family or business has been impacted by this law: (207) 444-5556.
