The US Supreme Court upholds the nation's healthcare reform law.
It requires Americans to buy health insurance by 2014. Under the mandate, if you don't have health insurance, you'll have to pay a tax.
Thursday, 14 News spoke with the President and CEO of Mills Body Shops, Don Decker.
He employs 77 people at five locations around the Tri-State, and he's not in favor of what this health care reform means for a business of his size.
It's going to impact our business in some way or another, and the way things are looking right now, it's not in a good way," Decker says.
Decker says his company has been offering benefits to employees for around 30 years.
Right now, the company pays 80% of the insurance premiums, leaving employees to cover the additional 20%.
He'd like to keep it that way, but isn't sure he'll be able to.
"If the premiums keep increasing the way they're going something has to be done."
Under the newly upheld healthcare act, companies like Decker's. with 50 or more full-time workers must provide coverage or face a penalty.
$2,000 per employee.
Even though he doesn't want to, Decker says he's thinking about dropping the coverage and taking the penalty to keep things more affordable.
And he's not alone.
"And they're reevaluating whether or not they should be offering health care for employees or just taking the penalty and maybe offering some kind of stipend to an employee that they go out and purchase their own health care," said President and CEO of the Economic Development Coalition of Southwestern Indiana Greg Wathen.
Wathen says health care is always a major concern among the businesses he works with, and according to him, it may be keeping some from growing.
"Take, for example, a company that's less than 50 employees. Do they hire more employees and then they'll be kicked into health care or will companies look at you know what maybe we should just hire more part-time employees," Wathen said.
As for Don Decker, he knows he now has an important decision to make.
Copyright 2012 WFIE. All rights reserved.