Toxic Prescription for Small Business
I had two shocking conversations recently that took my breath away, both with entrepreneurs who were in support of socialized healthcare…er…uh…I mean “Healthcare Reform.” I am not generally speechless but open support of socialism occurring in the USA is something I never expected to witness in my lifetime. Most ironically, I never expected to hear such gushing support from small business owners.
In the first case, I ran into a man who makes his living as a commercial and residential real estate landlord. What began as a discussion about the high cost of groceries led to him complaining about the cost of healthcare and gasoline. In his frustration (too costly to drive his SUV to out-of-state soccer tournaments for his dear daughters), he stated the government should take control of the healthcare and energy industries in order to keep costs down. When I suggested the principles he described sounded supportive of socialism, he sheepishly said, “Well, I guess I am for socialism for some commodities. If everyone needs it, the government should control the costs.”
Stunned to hear such comments in America, I missed the most obvious comeback of all! If healthcare and gasoline are considered commodities, and if the government should control those commodities to make them affordable to everyone, shouldn’t housing rental prices be controlled as well? Some may suggest housing is an essential commodity as well…a “right” rather than a “privilege.” Is he willing to forego his very profitable rental business for the good of all?
My second conversation took place with a computer services company owner. Again, small talk led to the current healthcare debate. According to my colleague, “The government needs to control healthcare costs because insurance companies and doctors make too much money. Healthcare should be accessible and cheap for everyone. I just believe in taking care of my brother!”
Really? The average insurance company profit margin is 3.4%. If healthcare profits are too high, what about computer service companies? I have been in and around the computer services and software businesses long enough to know that a 3.4% profit margin is well below average. Some may suggest computers must be “affordable and available” to everyone. Following that line of logic, shouldn’t the networks be accessible and affordable? Does that lead to the government taking over the internet and cable industries? How about PC manufacturers? Of course, computers must be stable so perhaps we should form a US Government Geek Squad, eh? Where does it end?
Don’t get me wrong. I think strong measures must be taken to address healthcare and I have personally been affected by issues of high premiums, pre-existing conditions, and being “job-locked.” But, as a small business strategist with total passion for entrepreneurial genius, I am distressed with the idea of turning 1/6 of our economy over to an entity overburdened with debt and without a clue about productivity, efficiency, profit or innovation.
Our government has taken over nearly 50% of the US economy in less than 18 months. Entrepreneurs must wake up or your business could be next.
(My series “Ready, Set, Growth: How to Prepare your Small Biz for the Upswing” will resume tomorrow. Thank you for indulging me today as I discuss my concerns with the Healthcare legislation signed in the US today.)
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