Kentucky Bill Would Expand Health Insurance For Small Businesses

Kentucky Bill Would Expand Health Insurance For Small Businesses in Group Health Insurance

A committee in the Kentucky’s House of Representatives recently approved a bill that would expand help for small businesses to provide health insurance for their employees.

The new bill would make more small businesses eligible to receive ICARE coverage. ICARE is a state-subsidized program that provides health insurance for small businesses with 25 employees or less.

Under the new measure, ICARE would be available for businesses with up to 50 employees, reported the Courier-Journal.

Bill sponsor state Representative Tommy Thompson (not former Wisconsin governor and previous Republican presidential candidate) said the plan would cost the state around $5 to $6 million in the next two years.

“We think [the new bill] is going to allow a lot more people to join the ranks of the insured — if there’s money for it,” said Rep. Thompson.

The bill will now go to the full House for approval.

Small businesses around the country have been hit particularly hard by rising health care and insurance costs. More and more are being priced out of health insurance.

Around 39 percent of small businesses don’t provide coverage for employees, reported USA Today.

Many experts believed Health Savings Account plans would catch wind because of their potential cost-reducing coverage, but they haven’t yet convinced a majority of small businesses.

Kentucky isn’t the only state looking to take action — others are considering laws intended to help cover small business employees.

In the Peach State, lawmakers proposed a Georgia health insurance bill to make HSA plans more attractive for small businesses through tax credits. Also on the federal level, the U.S. Senate is also pondering legislative ways to help small businesses insure their employees.

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