Washington, DC, May 9, 2006--Nearly 100 realtors from Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C, representing the 1.2 million members of the National Association of Realtors and their families, converged on the U.S. Senate to plead for quick passage of small business health plan legislation.
During their visit to Capitol Hill, the Realtors® delivered over 160,000 letters written by NAR members from across the country to their Senators encouraging them to support the legislation passed by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which has jurisdiction over health care legislation for small business employees and the self-employed. The letters emphasize why passage of Small Business Health Plans is critical to them, their families and other people in their community, many of whom currently do not have coverage because they work for a small business or are self employed.
“Congress has an immediate opportunity to act now to pass legislation that is critical to the well-being of 46 million uninsured Americans, including 28 percent of Realtors® who have no insurance at all,” said NAR President Thomas M. Stevens of Vienna, Va.
Small business health care legislation would allow self-employed workers and small business employees to band together through a trade or professional association to negotiate lower health insurance costs, giving them access to the same quality group insurance plans currently available to union workers and employees of large corporations.
“Passing this bill is logical; small business people and entrepreneurs deserve the same access to health care coverage that large companies provide their employees and families,” said Stevens. “Congress can take a major step for a healthier America by passing this bill for affordable and comprehensive health care insurance.”
A recent poll conducted by NAR showed that an overwhelming majority of voters – 89 percent --favor small business health plan legislation. The U.S. Senate is expected to vote on S. 1955, the Health Insurance Marketplace Modernization and Affordability Act, on Tuesday, May 9. The Senate HELP committee approved S. 1955 on March 15 by a vote of 11-9.
Today, Realtors® who are coming in by bus, van and car pool will visit many senatorial offices to strongly encourage lawmakers to vote yes for passage of S. 1955 and to move forward with full congressional passage.
The National Association of Realtors®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing more than 1.2 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
