Russ Hotchkiss owns a small retail furniture business in Plainfield and has three full-time employees. While his wife's insurance policy covers their children, Russ uses private insurance to cover himself and his workers. Unfortunately, the cost of this plan has jumped more than 20% over the past five years. To keep up with the rising cost of his health insurance Russ has been forced to lower the level of coverage he and his employees receive.
"The rising cost is a big concern as a small business owner. I often feel that I have to scramble to meet the payments, and I find that I am always searching for new programs that are more cost effective. I have had to cut the levels of benefits in order to afford the cost. We have gone from a PPO type plan to an HMO in order to reduce costs," Russ said.
