WASHINGTON – United States Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Chair Mary Landrieu today made the following comment on the release of the President's Council of Economic Advisers' "Economic Effects of Health Care Reform on Small Businesses and Their Employees" report:

"It's good to see the administration is continuing to address concerns of small businesses and healthcare - the number one concern I hear from small businesses and advocates. The fact is, owners want to provide stable, quality insurance for their employees and they need to to attract top talent and stay competitive. But as this report reveals, skyrocketing costs are too much to bear. When faced with the choice of cutting employees or cutting health insurance the insurance is the first to go. Pooling small businesses together through insurance exchanges and providing them with tax credits will help to make quality, stable health care affordable for our nation's innovators and job creators. Reform is needed because keeping our small businesses healthy means keeping our economy healthy."

The report can be found on the White House's website at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/cea/Health-Care-Reform-and-Small-Businesses/