About 86 percent of Ohio’s small businesses will be eligible for a tax credit that’s aimed at helping employers pay for their workers’ health insurance coverage, according to a report from a left-leaning consumer group.
The catch is, a company can’t have more than 25 employees to be considered a small business. Businesses will be eligible this year for the tax credits, which were included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the name of the controversial health reform package that passed earlier this year.
In Ohio, nearly 128,000 businesses will be eligible for the tax credits, according to a statement from consumer group Families USA. In Minnesota, about 84 percent of small business are eligible for the credits.
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The maximum tax credit equals 35 percent of the cost of health coverage. Employers with 10 or fewer workers who earn an average wage of less than $25,000 are eligible for it. As the number of employees and their average wages rise, the tax credit is reduced on a sliding scale, Families USA said.
While you’d think all small businesses would support receiving tax credits, it’s not quite that simple. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Federation of Independent Business have said the tax credits won’t do much to help small business afford health insurance.
Of course, it’s important to consider the sources of the criticism. The Chamber of Commerce spent millions lobbying against health reform and would have a tough time saving face if it came out in support of any of the law’s provisions. The NFIB gives 96 percent of its campaign contributions to Republicans and supports a conservative agenda of lower taxes and less regulation, the Puget Sound Business Journal reported.
Families USA, by contrast, is generally known as a liberal organization so it’s no surprise that it’d put out reports praising Democrat-led health reform. So as usual, one’s opinion on health reform and its supposed benefits or detriments is determined less by facts and more by one’s political leanings.
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Photo from flickr user Tobyotter
