Healthcare costs for employers and employees dominated the conversation between business, city and county leaders and Senator Chuck Grassley during his stop at American Home Shield in Carroll Thursday afternoon. One issue raising concerns was the large cost of providing health insurance for companies and the even higher cost of including older workers in that plan. Grassley indicated a healthcare bill currently in the U.S. House of Representatives aims to bring back a policy from before the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was in place to ease that burden.
Grassley believes this change will bring benefits to both employers and their employees. He also pointed out that businesses can claim healthcare for employees as a cost-of-business deduction on their taxes. Region XII Council of Governments Executive Director, Rick Hunsaker, indicated current policies made it difficult for the agency to keep older workers employed if they can no longer use Medicare as primary healthcare. Grassley says the government should not impede people who wish to work.
Grassley says the government aims to keep enrollment in Medicare as low as possible.
He suggested the goal at the federal level right now is to address the citizens with no clear opportunity for health insurance coverage. Grassley made stops in Manning and Denison earlier Thursday as part of his annual 99-county tour.
