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Washington Watch
July 2, 2003
Medical Savings Account
Added to Version of the Medicare Reform Package
Good news for the nation’s self-employed and
micro-businesses – the House of Representatives passed
tax-free savings accounts for unreimbursed medical
expenses. This provision was added to the Medicare
reform bill. Washington Watch reported on an earlier
bill, H.R. 2351, which would create Health Savings
Accounts (HSA) for medical expenses. This bill joined
with the full expansion of Medical Savings Accounts (MSA)
to create
H.R. 2596 and added to the Medicare drug bill (H.R.
1). Although added to the Medicare drug bill, the
savings accounts would be available for all Americans,
not just seniors.
The Senate also passed a Medicare bill (S.
1), but that version did not include a provision
for HSAs. That means members of both chambers will
meet to work out the differences in a conference
committee. The NASE will closely watch the conference,
and advocate for HSAs to stay in the Medicare package
and become law.
Specifically, the provisions in H.R. 2596 would expand
Medical Savings Accounts, which are currently only
available to people with employer-sponsored health
plans with high deductibles, to be available to all
Americans. The new accounts, called Health Savings
Accounts for the insured and Health Savings Security
Accounts for those currently uninsured, would help
individuals pay unreimbursed medical expenses on a
tax-preferred basis. The HSAs could be established by
any individual who is covered by a health plan with an
annual deductible of at least $1,000 for self-coverage
and $2,000 for family coverage. HSSAs could be created
for uninsured individuals or those with a lower
deductible. Money not used for medical expenses in one
year could be carried over to the next.
NASE Member Brenda Eichelberger feels strongly about
medical savings accounts as a fix to the broken health
care system for the self-employed and
micro-businesses.
“What we really need is access to a catastrophic
health insurance policy along with access to a Medical
Savings Account,” Eichelberger said. “Not only do
members of NASE need access to MSAs, but everyone
needs access to these accounts.... I urge Congress to
make MSAs available to everyone. Please help us out;
we are drowning in health insurance costs!”
Urge your Senators to support the expansion of medical
savings accounts, and to pass them with the Medicare
reform bill at the
NASE
Legislative Action Center.
Small Business
Committee Democrats Issue Federal Agency Report Card
House Small Business Committee Democrats released a
report card last week on federal government agencies, which
evaluates how they are doing on the federal small business
mandate for procurement. Unfortunately, grades in the report,
“Federal Agencies: Closed to Small Business,” were very
poor.
Government agencies – 21 of which are reviewed in the report
– are supposed to award 23 percent of their procurement
contracts to small businesses, 5 percent to women, and 5
percent to minorities. According to the report card, the
fourth such scorecard the Democrats have issued, the federal
government failed to meet this goal, costing small
businesses an estimated $13.8 billion in federal contracting
opportunities. On a scale of A to F, there were no A’s, four
B’s, five C’s, nine D’s and three F’s given to the agencies.
“We all know the economy is hurting right now. Many
companies are buying less, laying off workers, and trying to
cut costs” said Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez (D-NY),
ranking member of the committee. “But the federal government
isn't. In fact, from 2001 to 2002, federal procurement
dollars rose 7 percent, from $220 billion to $235.4 billion,
yet small business opportunities declined. Even though the
government bought more last year, it still failed to meet a
single one of its small business goals for the third
straight year.”
The scorecard proposes several reforms for opening up the
federal marketplace to small businesses, including stronger
action to fight contract bundling, modernizing and
implementing programs for women- and minority-owned
businesses, allocating adequate and necessary resources to
ensure increased small business participation, and greater
commitment from the
U.S. Small Business Administration in
fulfilling its role as a small business advocate in the
federal procurement arena.
Tell the NASE your experiences with federal procurement at
the Legislative Action Center.
SBA Anniversary Expo
The U.S. Small Business Administration recently announced the
schedule of events for this year’s
50th
Anniversary Entrepreneurship Conference and Expo, September
17-19, 2003. The event will take place in Washington, D.C., and
includes a trade show, business sessions, awards and a town hall
meeting. Check out the schedule for the Expo, and all of the
Regional Events being held this year to celebrate SBA’s
birthday.
New SBA Web site
Provides Easier Access to Regulations
A new Web site launched by the
Office of
Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration offers
micro-businesses quick and easy access to proposed federal
regulations and the ability to submit comments on the
regulations. The “Regulatory
Alerts” page lists proposed rules, broken down by topical
category and a link to submit comments electronically.
For example, the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed a rule
that would dramatically limit emissions from diesel engines used
in off road applications, including construction, power
generation, and agriculture. If this regulation would adversely
affect your micro-business, you can give your opinion, and try
to stop the rule from taking effect.
Be sure to look for the upcoming issue of Self-Employed America,
in your mailboxes soon, for more information on how federal
regulations affect the self-employed and micro-businesses, and
how the
SBA Ombudsman may be able to help.
Do any of these issues
affect you? Do you want to be proactive in helping the
micro-business community?
Visit the NASE Legislative Action Center and be a
Small Business Crusader. Members of Congress
appreciate hearing from their constituents. Letting
your members know how you feel on an issue puts
strength behind the NASE legislative agenda.
For more information about any of the articles in
Washington Watch, contact Maureen Petron, NASE public
affairs manager, at (202) 466-2100 or
mpetron@nase.org.
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