• NASE Supports Electronic Patient Records Act
• House Passes Amendment to Restore SBA 7(a) Loan Program
• June NASE Member Poll: Federal Small Business Programs

NASE Supports Electronic Patient Records Act

Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Bill Frist (R-TN) put partisan politics aside to address one aspect of the nation’s growing health care crisis. Last week they introduced the “Health Technology to Enhance Quality Act of 2005” (Health TEQ), a bill to increase technology and communication among hospitals about patients nationwide with private, electronic patient records. Proponents claim the legislation would make the health care system more affordable and efficient, saving up to $200 billion per year. The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) supports this legislation as an important step toward affordable and patient-centered health care in this country. “This innovative legislation will help launch America’s transition away from outmoded pen-and-pad medicine by encouraging the creation of an interoperable, secure and technology-based system of medical care,” said Frist, the only physician serving in the Senate. The legislation includes three sections to implement these technological objectives: Creates, by statute, the Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology to develop a nationwide health IT infrastructure which would be mandatory for federal government programs but voluntary for the private sector. Encourages the implementation of electronic health information systems that work together by encouraging standard hardware and software for the electronic exchange of health information. Provides for the adoption of standardized quality measures to assess the effectiveness, timeliness, efficiency and safety of federal health care programs to aggregate and analyze this quality data for the purpose of providing information to consumers and professionals. “Upgrades in medical technology can save lives in emergency situations,” said NASE executive director of the legislative office Kristie Darien. “The NASE applauds Senators Clinton and Frist for working toward a more efficient and cost-effective medical recording system.” For more information on the NASE's position on health care, visit http://advocacy.nase.org/.

House Passes Amendment to Restore SBA 7(a) Loan Program

The U.S. House of Representatives voted 234 to 189 to pass an amendment to the Science, State, Justice and Commerce (SSJC) Appropriations bill to restore funding for the Small Business Administration’s 7(a) loan program. The amendment will restore funding to the Fiscal Year 2004 level of $79 million. The SBA 7(a) loan program, which provides 30 percent of all long term loans, was eliminated last year. Since then, the SBA has only been able to back loans using application fees. If the amendment passes the Senate, application fees could be cut in half from $3,000 to $1,500 on a $150,000 loan. Application fees would drop further for larger loans. The vote for the amendment was led by the bipartisan efforts of Representatives Steve LaTourette (R-OH) and Nydia Velázquez (D- NY) and garnered support from both sides of the aisle. President Bush had experienced some criticism earlier this year when his budget eliminated subsidies for the program. “At a time when our economy is lagging behind in job creation, and small businesses are heavily relied on to change that, this is a huge hurdle we have overcome – and we need to let our nation’s entrepreneurs know that help is on the way,” said Velázquez. “The passage of this amendment is a step toward relieving entrepreneurs of these additional costs, and allowing them to do what they do best – create jobs and stimulate economic growth.” NASE executive director of the legislative office, Kristie Darien, participated in a House Small Business Committee roundtable early this year to give input on the difficulties small businesses have with access to capital and how changes to the SBA 7(a) loan program might affect small business lending. For more information on the SBA 7(a) loan program, visit http://www.sba.gov/. Let your Senators know how you feel about the SBA 7(a) loan program as they debate the funding through the online Legislative Action Center at http://advocacy.NASE.org.

June NASE Member Poll: Federal Small Business Programs

Take the online member poll on federal small business programs. These programs include SBA Office of Advocacy, the Small Business Development Centers, SCORE and the SBA Micro-Loan Program. As deficits continue to increase and the federal budget is tightened and funds to these important programs are at risk of being substantially cut, the NASE wants to hear your thoughts. Let the NASE know your opinions on these programs by visiting the MyNASE Web site at http://my.nase.org/. Log in to your free MyNASE Web Account. If you have not set up an account, you can do so at http://my.nase.org/ with your member number. Let your voice be heard in the association by taking this federal small business programs survey before the end of June.