mr. speaker , 45 million americans lack health insurance today , and the number is rapidly growing . 
twenty-six percent of all adults in louisiana lack health insurance , and 22.6 percent of all working adults in louisiana lack insurance . 
it has been said over here that we need the insurance mandates to protect the patient . 
insurance mandates are meaningless without insurance . 
we need a free market health care system that allows doctors to make decisions and not insurance companies . 
fifty-two percent of louisiana 's small businesses offer health insurance , and the number is constantly declining . 
we must act to ensure that americans can afford the health insurance that they need , and we can do so by passing h.r. 525 , the small business health fairness act . 
this bill will create association health plans that will allow small businesses to band together through bona fide trade associations to become larger purchasers of health insurance , thus giving small businesses the same benefits that fortune 500 companies now enjoy . 
the congressional budget office has estimated that small businesses obtaining insurance through ahps would average premium reductions of 13 percent and some as high as 25 percent reductions . 
overhead costs alone would decrease by as much as 30 percent under these plans . 
what is wrong with this ? 
this is offering affordable coverage to workers . 
there is additional research that also shows that up to 8.5 million americans who are currently uninsured would become insured under ahps . 
and this bill offers very many protections , consumers protections and protections with regard to solvency , as outlined . 
if we are going to lower costs and increase accessibility to health care , we need to create choices and enhance competition . 
this bill is an important first step , and i urge its passage . 
