The Virginia Main Street Alliance is conducting a survey of small businesses about health care and health care reform. The survey takes about five minutes. The survey is a good way both to gather information and educate people a little about health care reform. You can take the survey online at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/online-bb.
The tax credit for small businesses that provide health insurance can apply to 2010 payments. More information is available at http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=223666,00.html.
The Virginia Main Street Alliance is looking for businesses that have benefitted from health care reform. If you or your business have benefitted from health care reform please contact Bob Becker by replying to this email or by calling 804-937-0752
Three leaders of the Virginia Main Street Alliance met with Delegates Carr and McClellen last week to begin working on state implementation of health care reform. We know that the state will have many options on how to implement the reform and we want small businesses to have input on implementation.
The one year anniversary of the passage of the health care reform act is March 23. A week long “celebration” is being planned with events across the nation. March 22 is set as small business day. On that day (March 22) Federal Health and Human Services District Director JoAnn Grossi will be in Richmond for a day of meeting with small businesses and a presentation to the public that evening. Ms Grossi will be in Petersburg on Wednesday the 23rd with a similar schedule.
The Obama administration has just announced that it will allow states to seek waivers from the health care reform bill in 2014. (Waivers were to be allowed in 2017) The administration hopes that this effort will allow states flexibility to create innovations in health care. The administration emphasized that any state that asks for a waiver must show that coverage will be at least as good as under the federal law.
For those interested in how health care will be implemented here in Virginia, the first report of the group that will be overseeing implementation (we think) is available on line at http://www.hhr.virginia.gov/initiatives/healthreform/. It is long but the recommendations at the very end give a sense of where the state might go.
The Virginia Main Street Alliance
a project of Virginia Organizing
804-937-0752
bob@virginia-organizing.org
