President Obama's Healthcare Speech Rings True for Small Business

President Obama reiterated Wednesday night in his address on healthcare reform what we've been hearing from small business owners across the country, the status quo is no longer acceptable. He acknowledged that for America's small business owners to be successful, they need reform, and they need it now.

The president shifted the debate away from the anti-reform rhetoric the country got bogged down in over the summer and back to the facts, which is that there is considerable bipartisan agreement on about 80 percent of the components of healthcare reform. We've seen the same overwhelming support in opinion polling we conducted of small business owners in 17 states across the nation. Elements including cost containment, insurance reform (specifically eliminating preexisting condition rules), establishing an insurance marketplace and providing tax credits to help small businesses and individuals afford insurance are all components the vast majority of small businesses support.

President Obama also introduced some new features we believe will be a great boon to small businesses, including a fail-safe mechanism to ensure cost savings and to prevent the deficit from rising, and a plan Senator McCain proposed during the campaign last year for a high-risk pool.

Those who suggest that reform will crush small businesses are, simply, wrong. What's crushing small businesses is skyrocketing healthcare costs, limited choices and a broken system that has this country's small business owners stuck in a financial morass. With his speech Wednesday night, President Obama invigorated and united proponents, shone a light on the facts and invited all those involved to contribute constructive solutions.

We are closer to reform now than we've ever been, and we must put political agendas aside and continue to move forward in our commitment to achieving reform this year. Constructive participation on both sides of the aisle is needed. The time for change is now, and we must work together in order to succeed. The future prosperity of our small business owners and the continued economic health of our nation depend on it.