Don’t limit health insurance options

By Ken Small, Las Vegas

Friday, Aug. 21, 2015 | 2 a.m.

To attract the best employees, we offer health insurance as a benefit at my architecture firm. We always look for a quality and affordable plan, but this is getting increasingly difficult. If costs continue to increase, we might have to change plans in the future. We cannot afford for Nevada policymakers to set regulations that would limit our options.

One of the issues is that we work nationally. If health insurance costs rise more in Nevada than they do elsewhere, it makes companies in our state less competitive. We also compete with architects who do work out of their houses. They often offer customers more competitive rates than we do because they choose not to buy health insurance and have taken a risk we’re not willing to take. It impacts the entire market, especially in Nevada.

In order to keep costs down, it’s important to have flexibility and choice. The more options consumers have, the better the price and quality. Nevada officials must listen to the small-business owners in our state and work to ensure we have many health insurance options for our employees. High-value, limited-network plans can reduce cost for businesses and should always be available. Small-businesses owners must have the opportunity to choose the plans that make the most sense for their businesses and employees.