Trent Lott: “I want to talk about a needed addition to the Kennedy-Kassebaum legislation. If you are an employee of a Fortune 500…”

“I want to talk about a needed addition to the Kennedy-Kassebaum legislation. If you are an employee of a Fortune 500 company, you will probably make out okay under Kennedy-Kassebaum. If you are a union member, you'll definitely come out ahead. But there is not enough in Kennedy-Kassebaum to address the needs of working families and small businesses. How can you have health care portability when you cannot afford health care, like many small businesses cannot afford to provide for their employees? In the House-passed health portability bill, there was a pro-small business provision that I think we should include in any bill sent to the President. The provision, which the House called the Health Coverage Availability and Affordability Act of 1996, clarifies existing law. It allows small employers to join together to purchase health insurance for their employees. This act also included provisions allowing individuals to open medical savings accounts--something I support. But let me dwell on the small-business pooling aspect of this act. Right now, before we pass any bill in this Chamber, certain groups can pool their resources to buy lower cost insurance for their members or employees. These certain groups are large corporations and unions. For years, these groups could bargain for lower prices with insurers. If you are bigger, you can dictate better terms. That is just economics.”