GNYCC, BALCONY and NYC Hispanic Chamber to Conduct Health Care Insurance Workshops for Small Businesses

NEW YORK, NY (04/19/2012)(readMedia)-- The Greater New York Chamber of Commerce and the Business and Labor Coalition of New York (BALCONY,) along with the New York Hispanic Chamber of Commerce have been awarded a grant to help small businesses with health care and health insurance issues.

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), states can establish Health Insurance Exchanges where individuals and small businesses can shop for, and enroll in, health coverage. Last Thursday Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an Executive Order creating a Health Insurance Exchange in New York.

The Community Service Society, which awarded the grant to the GNYCC and BALCONY, and a dozen other groups, has established a Small Business Assistance Program (SBAP) to educate small companies about the new law and inform them of their options in choosing the best insurance plan for their employees.

"The model for this new program is our very own Community Health Advocates (CHA,) which for the last decade has helped more than 200,000 New Yorkers navigate the health care system," said Elisabeth R. Benjamin, Vice President of Health Initiatives at the Community Service Society. "With this outstanding statewide partnership, we can now join our expertise with trusted groups to address the health coverage and costs issues faced by New York's small businesses."

The GNYCC, BALCONY and the New York Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will stage health care workshops for small businesses over the next 11 months.

"The Small Business Assistance Program is a special service which the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce will provide to the more than 25,000 business and civic leaders currently in our data base," said GNYCC President Mark Jaffe. "Our plan is to stage many of the workshops at our landmark offices in New York at 20 W. 44th St."

The workshops will be held in the five boroughs of New York City, Long Island and Westchester through February 2013.

The first workshop will be at 10 a.m. on April 25 at Trade Nassau, at 440 Old Country Road in Carle Place, L.I. Featured speakers will include Jaffe, BALCONY Director Lou Gordon and Jeff Natt, a special health instructor for the GNYCC.

"We are excited by this opportunity to provide health guidance to our small business and labor union members, and we look forward to helping many companies and employees," Gordon said.

The Small Business Assistance Program will provide education and assistance about the availability of small business tax credits; health insurance and care options for small businesses and their employees; how to understand and comment upon proposed insurance rate increases under New York's new prior approval law; how to work with brokers; and the pros and cons of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and other small group products. In addition to the workshops, the groups will provide one-on-one counseling for small businesses to help them navigate the new law and the available health plans.

For more information contact: Mark Jaffe, GNYCC (212) 686-7220 or Lou Gordon, BALCONY (212) 219-7777