Ashdown on Health Care and Business
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 16, 2006
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Brett Garner
Office: (801) 983-7383
Cell: (801) 573-4759
****PRESS RELEASE****

Ashdown: Health Care Solutions for Small and Big Business

SALT LAKE CITY, UT--Pete Ashdown, the Democratic candidate for US
Senate and President of XMission, released the following statement
regarding today's committee passage of S. 1955, the Health Insurance
Marketplace Modernization and Affordability Act of 2005:

"As a small business owner for the past thirteen years, I am intimate with the
cost of health care for my employees. Premiums have risen drastically and
benefits have dropped. If my business had a million-dollar bankroll, I would
most likely abandon health care insurance altogether and pay costs out of
pocket.  I support this bill, as I have proposed a plan similar to association
health plans, which I call Health Insurance Unions for small businesses. 
However, I will work for a broader health care solution one that encompasses:
small businesses such as mine; big businesses such as GM and Delta; and every
citizen of the United States.  To do this, the people of Utah should elect
someone with actual experience with the costs and benefits of health care."

For further comment, contact the information above.