Thomas Daschle: “I spoke about the burden of the high cost of health care on families in South Dakota and across the country. I spoke of…”

“I spoke about the burden of the high cost of health care on families in South Dakota and across the country. I spoke of citizens who were forced to pay health care premiums as high as $10,000 per year but received only the sparest benefits in return. I spoke of citizens with serious health problems who were not able to acquire coverage because insurers decided it wasn't profitable for them. I spoke of the millions of Americans living in fear because they were just one layoff, one bad crop, or one illness away from losing their health insurance and being driven into poverty and poor health. But the high costs of health insurance are a burden not only to individuals, they are also a huge burden to small business. In the past year alone, health care premiums for businesses have risen more than 13 percent. If this keeps up, the cost of health care for businesses will double every 7 years--six times faster than their revenues. Small businesses, which employ 50 percent of the workers in this country, face the greatest pressure of all.”