Caterpillar
Inc. said the health-care overhaul legislation being considered by
the U.S. House of Representatives would increase the company's
health-care costs by more than $100 million in the first year alone.
In a letter Thursday to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)
and House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio, Caterpillar urged
lawmakers to vote against the plan "because of the substantial
cost burdens it would place on our shareholders, employees and
retirees."
Caterpillar, the world's
largest construction machinery manufacturer by sales, said it's
particularly opposed to provisions in the bill that would expand
Medicare taxes and mandate insurance coverage. The legislation would
require nearly all companies to provide health insurance for their
employees or face large fines.
The Peoria-based company said
these provisions would increase its insurance costs by at least 20
percent, or more than $100 million, just in the first year of the
health-care overhaul program.
"We can ill-afford cost
increases that place us at a disadvantage versus our global
competitors," said the letter signed by Gregory Folley, vice
president and chief human resources officer of Caterpillar. "We
are disappointed that efforts at reform have not addressed the cost
concerns we've raised throughout the year."
Business
executives have long complained that the options offered for
covering 32 million uninsured Americans would result in higher
insurance costs for those employers that already provide coverage.
Opponents have stepped up their attacks in recent days as the House
moves closer toward a vote on the Senate version of the health-care
legislation.
A letter Thursday to President Barack Obama and
members of Congress signed by more than 130 economists predicted the
legislation would discourage companies from hiring more workers and
would cause reduced hours and wages for those already
employed.
Caterpillar noted that the company supports efforts
to increase the quality and the value of health care for patients as
well as lower costs for employer-sponsored insurance
coverage.
"Unfortunately, neither the current
legislation in the House and Senate, nor the president's proposal,
meets these goals," the letter said.
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