WASHINGTON – Today Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, made the following statement after President Bush’s participation in a health care roundtable today:



“It’s a broken record with this President who clings to the same unworkable proposals while America’s 26 million small businesses wait for real solutions to reduce health care costs. In a hearing I held in February, we talked about real answers and moved the debate beyond the Republicans’ tired old hobbyhorse of Association Health Plans. Now we must move beyond the President’s wrong-headed tax scheme. Small businesses shouldn’t just be a prop for the President’s short-sighted failed policies.



“In Congress, we’re focusing on a comprehensive solution to the health care crisis that will make insurance more affordable for everyone and help small businesses provide their employees with adequate health coverage. I’m working to pass legislation that will decrease premiums by 10 percent, encourage small employers to offer coverage through tax credits and, along with my colleagues on the Finance Committee, cover up to half of the uninsured children in America today – many of whom have parents working for small businesses – through the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.”