WASHINGTON, March 21 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Small businesses in Philadelphia are big winners in the comprehensive healthcare reform package that the House is expected to approve today, according to Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA-02).

"Small businesses are major employers and the backbone of our economy in Philadelphia," Fattah said. "It is important to understand that they will be big winners, benefiting for their employees and their own bottom line, as we reform our dysfunctional healthcare system."

According to Fattah:

** Over 20,000 Philadelphia small businesses will receive tax credits to help them afford coverage. Small businesses with 25 employees or less and average wages of less than $50,000 will qualify for tax credits of up to 50 percent of the costs of providing health insurance.

** Over 23,000 Philadelphia small businesses with 100 employees or less will be allowed to enter the new healthcare coverage exchange, gaining the same buying power as major corporations.

"This legislation will NOT be a burden on small business," Fattah said. "The vast majority of these businesses, those with fewer than 50 employees, are exempt from the shared responsibility requirement. They will gain, not lose under the bill.

"It is often overlooked that 60 percent of America's uninsured – 28 million people – are small business owners, their workers and their families," Fattah said.

"In Philadelphia, corner market, the barbershop, small firms and merchants are the heartbeat of our great city," he said. "They have been disproportionately impacted by soaring healthcare costs and insurance hurdles. Today, at last, we can tell these employers and their workers: help is on the way."

Contact Ron Goldwyn

215-913-0972 or ron.goldwyn@mail.house.gov

SOURCE Office of Congressman Chaka Fattah

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