• Note From The Editor: Washington Watch Digest Is Now WW Quarterly
• NASE Testifies Before Congress On Worker Classification
• Uninsured Rate Incorrect, Census Bureau Says
• Health IT Struggles To Gain Traction
• Bipartisan Effort In Insurance Reauthorization Plan

Note From The Editor: Washington Watch Digest Is Now WW Quarterly

You may have noticed last week that you received a regular edition of Washington Watch instead of the usual Washington Watch Digest, which highlights the most pertinent stories of the previous month. In an effort to continue to provide you with the most up-to-date legislative reports on micro-business issues, we’ve decided to discontinue the monthly version of the digest, but don’t worry. It isn’t going away for good. Instead, we’ve decided to offer it four times each year in the months of January, April, July, and September. WW Quarterly will still provide you with the same great information and allow you to brush up the most current NASE news. We hope you’ll find it just as easy to read and convenient as Washington Watch Digest. Make sure to keep an eye out for the first issue at the end of next month! Signed, The Washington Watch team Congress Revisits Worker Classification Issues The National Association for the Self-Employed (NASE) recently weighed in on the problems surrounding worker classification in the eyes of the Internal Revenue Service. The U.S. House Workforce Protections Subcommittee held a hearing in which the NASE, through the submission of written testimony, emphasized the lack of easy-to-understand resources to help self-employed individuals and micro-business owners navigate the maze of confusing regulations surrounding worker classification. Some of the current assessments include a ten-factor common law test generally used by courts for certain legal arguments, a six-factor test by the U.S. Department of Labor and a twenty factor test by the IRS. “The issues plaguing worker classification stem from the fact that classification of an individual into an employee or an independent contractor is subjective under the tax code,” said Kristie Darien, NASE executive director of the legislative office. “With recent concerns regarding the tax gap and increasing tax compliance, the NASE believes that Congress has an opportunity to address these issues once and for all.” The NASE recommended more accurate ways to determine whether a worker is an independent contractor and if a business is incorporated. To be classified as an independent contractor, the business or contractor must demonstrate economic independence, workplace independence and a written contract between the independent contractor and the service recipient. The incorporation test qualifies LLCs and corporations as independent contractors provided there is a written contract and the contractors provide for their own benefits. To read the NASE’s full testimony, visit the NASE in Action web page at http://advocacy.nase.org/advocacy_efforts.asp. Uninsured Rate Incorrect, Census Bureau Says The U.S. Census Bureau announced last week that it is lowering the estimate of the number of Americans without health insurance to 44.8 million. The previous estimate, which was released last August, set the number at 46.6 million. The bureau says the disparity occurred due to the miscalculation of some household members. “Updated figure or not, there are still too many people living without health insurance in this country,” said Kristie Darien, executive director of the NASE legislative office. “In addition, the number of uninsured has been growing for the past few years, so we hope to see Congress put forth some workable proposals this session.” The NASE continues to support efforts to improve the nation’s health care system by increasing access to quality affordable coverage. A 2005 survey by the NASE found that the smallest companies are most impacted, with only 13.8% of companies that grossed less than $50,000 annually offering health insurance compared to 70% among those grossing more than $500,000 yearly. To read more about the US Census, visit http://www.census.gov/. Health IT Struggles To Gain Traction The advance of significant legislation may be more difficult than originally believed, despite continuing support from President Bush and advances in the 109th Congress. Congressional aides have acknowledged that other legislative priorities and funding issues are a factor. Health IT had been debated in previous years in the House and Senate. With Democrats leading Congress, plans for how to implement the systems differ from those proposed by Republicans in the past. Handling the costs of the transition to health IT and of the electronic health records has been particularly difficult for small medical offices. A recent study indicated that only 13 percent of solo practitioners use this technology and various proposals have been introduced to help offset these costs, most involving some sort of federal grant and tax-cuts to physicians. Another factor being debated is whether or not health IT systems will have adequate safeguards in place to protect the privacy of patients and who will be permitted to view these records. As part of the Your Health, Your Choice initiative promoting greater consumer choice, the NASE continues to advocate for health IT, as well as greater transparency in the health care sector. To learn more about the initiative, visit www.MicroBusinessHealth.com. For more information on the NASE's legislative priorities, visit http://advocacy.NASE.org. Bipartisan Effort In Insurance Program Reauthorization Senate Finance Committee members Senator John D. Rockefeller IV, D-WV, and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, announced a bipartisan bill to reauthorize the ten-year-old Children’s Health Insurance Plan (CHIP), which assists children from low-income families in gaining access to health coverage. The Finance Committee is tasked with reauthorization of the program, and the proposal addresses issues of eligibility, increased outreach and mental health coverage. “Ten years ago, the Children’s Health Insurance Program was created with bipartisan cooperation and it only makes sense to continue in that same spirit when reauthorizing this essential program,” said Senator Snowe. “It is imperative that Congress works across party lines to expand access to health care coverage for children across the country, both today and in the future.” The $50 billion reauthorization plan program would offer the option to allow the financial records of enrollees to be accessed in order to find out if they qualify for other low-income programs. It would allow states to decide whether to offer benefits to children who are legal immigrants and pregnant women. It also guarantees dental coverage and increased mental health coverage. The NASE is pushing for provisions that would allow states to use some of these funds to offset costs of employer-sponsored coverage, as many parents with eligible children cannot afford their portion of the dependent premiums. To read a summary of the Rockefeller-Snowe legislation, visit http://www.senate.gov/~rockefeller/news/2007/pr033007a.html. To read more about the NASE’s legislative stance, visit http://advocacy.nase.org. To celebrate the launch of the brand new audio Web site, the NASE is offering you the chance to win an iPod Shuffle. Here's how to enter: Listen to the NASE's audio downloads (click here to listen) Provide the correct answer to the question and your contact information You'll automatically be entered in a random drawing for an iPod Shuffle - it's that easy! The Winner will be selected at random from all correct entries and will be announced the week of April 23, 2007