MedicalConspiracies- Small Businesses Freeze Hiring Over Obamacare

fyi.

Source:  http://www.newsmax.com

Small Businesses Freeze Hiring Over Obamacare

Many small businesses are holding off on hiring or are even shedding jobs due to fears of higher costs resulting from the implementation of Obamacare, a new poll reveals.

The Gallup poll was commissioned by the law firm Littler Mendelson, which specializes in employment law, and surveyed more than 600 owners whose businesses have less than $20 million in yearly sales.

More than four in 10 of the businesses surveyed â€" 41 percent â€" disclosed that they have frozen hiring because of Obamacare. And 19 percent said they had reduced their number of employees "as a specific result of the Affordable Care Act."

Another 38 percent of the small business owners said they have "pulled back on their plans to grow their business" because of the ACA.

"We don't know until 2014 and beyond what the impact of the ACA will be on businesses. There is tremendous fear that the premiums will be much higher, for small businesses especially," Littler Mendelson attorney Steven Friedman told CNBC.

Under Obamacare, nearly all firms with 50 or more full-time workers will have to offer health coverage or face a fine of $2,000 per full-timer after the first 30 employees.

The poll found that 18 percent of businesses surveyed have reduced the hours of employees to part-time to avoid the fine.

Other results of the poll include:

48 percent of owners believe Obamacare will be bad for their bottom line, compared to 9 percent who say it will be good for business.

55 percent of owners say the ACA will lead to higher healthcare costs, while just 5 percent believe it will lower costs.

52 percent expect Obamacare to reduce the quality of healthcare.

24 percent say they may go so far as to drop insurance coverage due to Obamacare. "Small businesses are a major driver of job growth," The Weekly Standard observed, "and this Gallup poll helps shed light on why job growth has been so abysmal during the Obamacare era."