Auto Insurance
Back to Home > Sunday, May 07, 2006 Opinion Posted on Sun, May. 07, 2006 email this print this
Our state is facing a two-fold problem that demands attention and action -- stagnant wages and decreased access to health care. More than 100,000 N.C. workers are struggling to get by on just $5.15 an hour, and far too many families simply can't afford health care.
For generations, our state has been a national leader in addressing issues critical to the success of our families and communities. In such areas as early childhood development, predatory lending, and educational accountability, our state was a courageous innovator. But now other states are setting the pace in tackling important issues. The Republican governor of Arkansas recently signed a bill increasing that state's minimum wage to $6.25 from the federal minimum of $5.15. That made Arkansas the 20th state to raise its minimum wage above the federal minimum.
This news from Arkansas is just more evidence that it's time for us to raise the minimum wage in North Carolina. If you work hard and play by the rules, you ought to be able to make ends meet. More than that, you ought to be able to have the opportunity to improve your situation and that of your family. You simply cannot do that on $893 a month, the wages of a full-time minimum wage worker.
It has been almost a decade since the last federal increase, and Washington appears unlikely to move on this issue. The N.C. House of Representatives took a step in the right direction when it passed House Bill 20 last summer, which would increase the minimum wage to $6. While I would like to see the minimum wage increased by at least one dollar, I commend them for their leadership.
In addition to raising the minimum wage, the bill also contains a tax credit for small businesses that provide health insurance to their employees. The exploding cost of health care and more than 1.3 million uninsured North Carolinians combine to create one of the biggest problems facing our state. This is yet another area where federal leadership is sorely lacking, and states have been forced to take the lead.
According to the non-partisan North Carolina Institute of Medicine, we have added more than 300,000 to the ranks of the uninsured since 2000. It may surprise you to know that half of our uninsured actually have full-time jobs. Most of these working uninsured are employed in small businesses that simply cannot afford to provide health insurance for their employees. Providing a tax incentive to make insurance more affordable for small businesses makes a lot of sense.
However, small business tax incentives alone won't solve our state's health insurance problems. Several states are exploring significant health care reforms designed to greatly improve access while maintaining the high level of quality that sets our nation's health system apart.
For example, Massachusetts just adopted a bipartisan plan that requires all residents to buy health insurance, much as drivers are required to buy auto insurance. People who can't afford basic health insurance plans will be covered by Medicaid or state-subsidized plans, depending on their income level. Illinois just passed legislation that will provide health insurance for every child. Florida is testing a new Medicaid program that will provide insurers and plan participants with unprecedented flexibility in an attempt to make costs more predictable. We need real leadership in North Carolina to examine these kinds of big ideas and to take action to help our families.
This is cache, read story here
Our state is facing a two-fold problem that demands attention and action -- stagnant wages and decreased access to health care. More than 100,000 N.C. workers are struggling to get by on just $5.15 an hour, and far too many families simply can't afford health care.
For generations, our state has been a national leader in addressing issues critical to the success of our families and communities. In such areas as early childhood development, predatory lending, and educational accountability, our state was a courageous innovator. But now other states are setting the pace in tackling important issues. The Republican governor of Arkansas recently signed a bill increasing that state's minimum wage to $6.25 from the federal minimum of $5.15. That made Arkansas the 20th state to raise its minimum wage above the federal minimum.
This news from Arkansas is just more evidence that it's time for us to raise the minimum wage in North Carolina. If you work hard and play by the rules, you ought to be able to make ends meet. More than that, you ought to be able to have the opportunity to improve your situation and that of your family. You simply cannot do that on $893 a month, the wages of a full-time minimum wage worker.
It has been almost a decade since the last federal increase, and Washington appears unlikely to move on this issue. The N.C. House of Representatives took a step in the right direction when it passed House Bill 20 last summer, which would increase the minimum wage to $6. While I would like to see the minimum wage increased by at least one dollar, I commend them for their leadership.
In addition to raising the minimum wage, the bill also contains a tax credit for small businesses that provide health insurance to their employees. The exploding cost of health care and more than 1.3 million uninsured North Carolinians combine to create one of the biggest problems facing our state. This is yet another area where federal leadership is sorely lacking, and states have been forced to take the lead.
According to the non-partisan North Carolina Institute of Medicine, we have added more than 300,000 to the ranks of the uninsured since 2000. It may surprise you to know that half of our uninsured actually have full-time jobs. Most of these working uninsured are employed in small businesses that simply cannot afford to provide health insurance for their employees. Providing a tax incentive to make insurance more affordable for small businesses makes a lot of sense.
However, small business tax incentives alone won't solve our state's health insurance problems. Several states are exploring significant health care reforms designed to greatly improve access while maintaining the high level of quality that sets our nation's health system apart.
For example, Massachusetts just adopted a bipartisan plan that requires all residents to buy health insurance, much as drivers are required to buy auto insurance. People who can't afford basic health insurance plans will be covered by Medicaid or state-subsidized plans, depending on their income level. Illinois just passed legislation that will provide health insurance for every child. Florida is testing a new Medicaid program that will provide insurers and plan participants with unprecedented flexibility in an attempt to make costs more predictable. We need real leadership in North Carolina to examine these kinds of big ideas and to take action to help our families.
This is cache, read story here
