With the recent news that the Obama Administration will postpone the healthcare mandate on employers (but not on individuals) until after the mid-term elections, a new Gallup poll of 603 small business owners sheds some very interesting light on the Administration’s political calculations. The Gallup poll revealed that Obamacare is having a dramatic negative effect on the economy and on the ability of Americans to find jobs.
The Gallup poll reveals that more than 40 percent of small-business owners say that Obamacare has caused them to institute a hiring freeze. Nearly one in five small business employers say that Obamacare has caused them to fire existing employees. Almost one in five small-business owners said they have already cut back their workers’ hours to avoid adverse impacts of Obamacare. About one in four employers “are weighing whether to drop insurance coverage.”
Less than 1 in 10 employers said that Obamacare was good for their business. While almost one-half of those polled said that Obamacare was bad for business. A stunning 38 percent of small-business owners said that because of Obamacare they “have pulled back on their plans to grow their business.”
Only 1 in 20 of those polled said that Obamacare would lower healthcare costs. More than 10 times that number said that Obamacare would increase healthcare costs — a surprising 55 percent.
As to the quality of healthcare, only 13% said Obamacare would help improve care. More than half said Obamacare would reduce the quality of healthcare.
Small businesses have historically been key to job growth. This Gallup poll helps explain why job growth has been so weak during the so-called Obama recovery. In fact, perhaps Obamacare and the high tax and heavy regulatory approach of the Obama administration explains why the Obama “recovery” has been the weakest and most anemic recovery in nearly 70 years.