MSA NJ small business owner, Dan Preston on health care & small business. Originally posted as a Letter to the Editor on November 2, 2018 in Burlington County Times.

Health care is deeply important to people across the country. This is no less true for the millions of small business owners who now count on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for themselves, their families, and their employees. And, with insurance markets advantaging big employers over small business, ensuring quality, affordable health care for all is a crucial part of leveling the playing field between large corporations and Main Street.

Fifteen years ago I had a comfortable life and what most would describe as a great job, working for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. But I felt a pull to follow my dream of running my own business on the Maine coast, especially during those long, muggy summer nights in the capital.

In the years since we’ve made our home and family here, in many ways my dream has come true. We own and operate a bed and breakfast a few blocks from the water, just how I pictured things. As idyllic as that sounds, reality persists enough to keep me in the waking world. One harsh bit of reality conveniently absent in my dreams back in Washington was the difficulty small business owners have finding quality, affordable health care for themselves and their family.

Matt McColm, Main Street Alliance member and owner of Suzie Health Solutions in Wenatchee, spoke out at an empty chair town hall in Washington’s 8th congressional district this past Saturday. Sharing his perspective as an insurance producer and as someone with a pre-existing condition, Matt talked about the importance of protecting the Affordable Care Act, and solutions for better health care.

The latest iteration of the Republican’s Senate bill for repealing and replacing the ACA includes a proposal designed to attract the support of more Republican Senators who have stood in opposition to the first version. The Cruz-Lee amendment would allow insurers to sell off cheap insurance plans that fall short of providing the essential benefits required by the ACA, just as long as the insurance companies offer at least one plan that meets the ACA requirements.