One Man Band

Health insurance is a big problem for true DIY businesses. The cost of paying for health insurance can sink your business boat before it’s even out of drydock. Here are your choices:

• Do without health insurance until your business is well enough established that cash flow covers the cost.
• Piggy-back on a spouse’s company health insurance.
• Find a non-traditional group health insurance (for example, a professional association).

The State Legislature of California will step into this already-dense minefield next year. According to an article in today’s deadtree edition of the Los Angeles Times, the item at the top of the State Legislature’s agenda for next year will be expanding healthcare coverage:

Business expects to confront a variety of conflicting healthcare plans, including a universal-care mandate, a requirement that all individuals purchase coverage and a government-run so-called single-payer system.

Labor groups and their allies hope to keep pressure on policymakers by threatening to put a universal health insurance initiative on the November 2008 presidential election ballot.

If you live in California, you’ll want to keep a close eye on the healthcare monkeyshines in Sacramento.

If you don’t live in California, you may want to check on the proposed priorities of your own State’s legislature. Democrats are emboldened by their recent election success, and will push hard to forward their chosen agenda. That could prove costly to small businesses, like yours.