Health
By Alexis Taylor
Special to NNPA from the Afro
“R
ight now my employees don’t
have healthcare,” said William
F. Wingo, president of Power
Magazine. “I had healthcare for them, but it
just became too expensive,” said Wingo,
who for years provided benefits for employ-
ees of the Christian monthly that is
circulated in the Baltimore and Washington
D.C. areas.
“Business was booming in the publishing
industry so I could afford it at that time.
Everything kind of turned upside down and
we just didn’t have the means to afford it.”
nities for Small, Minority and Women-
owned Businesses forum, which was held
by the President’s Roundtable (PRT) and
REACH Foundation.
The forum presented a panel that includ-
ed healthcare industry leaders such as
Chester Burrell, President and CEO of
CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Rebecca
Pearce, Executive Director of the Maryland
Health Benefit Exchange, and Thomas
Kim, Deputy Secretary of the Maryland
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Also present was Maryland Lt. Governor,
Anthony G. Brown and Secretary of the
Maryland Department of Business and
Economic Development, Christian Johans-
son.
“The Affordable Care Act is large
and seemingly complex,” said
Maria Beckett, leader of the Presi-
dent’s Roundtable, an organization
made up of key entrepreneurs look-
ing to advance minority business.
“We really want to focus on the
opportunities,” said Becket, shortly
before beginning the session.
By far one of the most critical
pieces of law signed into legislation under
the Obama administration, the Patient Pro-
tection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA)
partly went into effect on March 23, 2010.
Under the PPACA, tax credits for nearly 4
million small businesses have become
available. Already in effect, the Small Busi-
ness Health Care Tax Credit incentive
covers up to 35 percent of the health care
costs incurred by employers. The credit can
also be applied to insurance costs for small
Page 12 The Portland Skanner April 25, 2012
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Like many entrepreneurs nationwide,
Wingo found himself unable to offer health
benefits to the workers that have helped
grow his company over the past 22 years.
“If you want to keep your employees you
have to give them healthcare. Hopefully, the
Affordable Care Act will enable us to do
that.”
Wingo was one of several minority busi-
ness owners that gathered for The
Affordable Care Act: Impact and Opportu-
ONLINE
Exemptions are written so
narrowly the vast majority
of small business owners
don’t qualify
PHOTO COURTESY WILLIAM WINGO
The Affordable Care Act and Small Business
Rev. William F. Wingo and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley. Wingo says the
Affordable Heath Care Act could be crucial to his business.
non-profit organizations, with those that are
eligible receiving a 25 percent discount.
The legislation will take effect in stages
and by 2015 all sections of the PPACA will
be in place.
By that time, eligible business owners
could have up to half of their health insur-
ance expenses covered, with non-profits
receiving 35 percent off.
Though benefiting some, opponents of the
law say the tax credits are temporary and do
nothing longterm for the larger number of
small businesses that do not meet require-
ments.
“The exemptions are written very narrow-
ly so the vast majority of small business
owners don’t qualify for it,” said Jack
Mozloom, senior representative for the
National Federation of Independent Busi-
nesses, the organization that expressed their
qualms about the law in court last month.
“Many of the organizations that got
waivers from the federal law were big
unions. Our members are small little mom
and pop businesses that don’t have that kind
of political clout so they can’t get the
waivers.”
The NFIB believes the law to be uncon-
stitutional because small businesses should
be able to buy insurance from whatever
state they want, at the price they want, from
whatever company they see fit.
To date, 26 states have joined with Flori-
da to file a multi-state suit, with Virginia
and Oklahoma filing independent motions.
Supreme Court justices began hearing
arguments on March 26 to decide whether
to keep the portion of the bill that mandates
all Americans have health insurance by
2014 or pay a penalty, which would be col-
lected in the same manner as taxes.
“Sometimes, Congress writes laws in
such a way that the laws can stand even if
one provision is removed, but that isn’t
what happened with the president’s health-
care law,” said President and CEO of the
National Federation of Independent Busi-
ness, Dan Danner in a statement.
“It was written in such a way that it’s all
or nothing. If the Supreme Court agrees that
the provision requiring people to buy health
insurance or pay a penalty is unconstitution-
al, then the entire health-care law
collapses.”
Both proponents for the law and those
against it say if the insurance mandate is
struck down, other portions of the law-if not
all of it- must die with too. Mozloom says
the other portions of the law can’t stand
alone because they are paid for with funds
generated from the individual insurance
mandate.
Still, others see no reason to do away with
the numerous benefits that both sides agree
on and Americans on Main Street desper-
ately need.
See HEALTH on page 16