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State Rep. Eugene DePasquale D-York www.pahouse.com/DePasquale

DePasquale bill would help small businesses afford health insurance

York County lawmaker says bill could improve access to health care for Pennsylvania workers

HARRISBURG, Jan. 14 – State Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-York, is reintroducing legislation that would permit small businesses to pool together to purchase group health insurance at reduced rates.

DePasquale said the measure could provide thousands of workers in Pennsylvania with access to affordable health-care coverage.

"Small businesses often have little choice in what health-care plan coverage they can purchase, and are forced to accept steep insurance rates which they and their employees simply cannot afford," DePasquale said. "Because smaller businesses lack the purchasing power that larger employers have when it comes to negotiating health insurance plans for their employees, they are usually left with very few, and very costly, options."

DePasquale said his proposal would alleviate many of the problems small-business owners face, especially in today's difficult economic climate, by providing them with a cost-effective way to obtain lower-cost insurance plans for themselves and their employees.

"This legislation is a sensible and commonsense way to provide insurance plans for our state’s small businesses and affordable coverage for their employees," he added. "It will help increase access, bring down costs and assist the largest growing employment sector in Pennsylvania -- small businesses."