U.S. Chamber Announces Campaign to Protect Workers' Employer-Sponsored Health Care

Multi-million Dollar Ad and Grassroots Campaign Highlights Perils of Government-Run Health Care

WASHINGTON, DC—The U.S. Chamber of Commerce today announced the Campaign for Responsible Health Reform (www.responsiblehealthreform.com/), a multi-million dollar advertising, media and grassroots campaign to promote health care reform that protects employer-sponsored health care, the bedrock of the nation's health care system for over 160 million Americans.

"We need to reform our health care system to bring down soaring costs and ensure more Americans have access to quality care," said Bruce Josten, executive vice president for government affairs at the U.S. Chamber. "But a government-run plan will cause businesses to cut jobs and could seriously harm our economic recovery."

A recent CNN survey found that 8 out of 10 American workers are satisfied with their employer-sponsored health plan, yet Congressional proposals would erect a government-run plan that would have an unfair advantage over private plans, eventually crowding them out of the market. Even if employer-sponsored plans survive, consumers are likely to face higher costs as health care providers shift costs to private payers due to artificially low government-run plan reimbursements.

"Preserving employer-sponsored health plans is critical for ensuring quality health care," added Josten. "Government-run plans in other countries have been found to make people wait long periods for consultations and treatments—and deny cutting edge treatments that can make the difference between life and death. That's not responsible reform."

The Campaign for Responsible Health Reform is running print and online ads, organizing events, placing opinion pieces in local media outlets, and generating letters and calls to members of Congress in Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Maine, and North Carolina. Chamber members have already sent more than 78,000 letters to their legislators opposing a government-run plan. The overarching message of the Campaign: a government-run plan will shut down employer-sponsored plans and hurt job creation and economic growth. Additional information about the Campaign is available at: www.responsiblehealthreform.com/.

The U.S. Chamber is the world's largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations of every size, sector, and region.

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