mr. speaker , in every state and every district when we meet with small business owners , their number one concern is rising health care costs .  even as we sit here , the cost of health care continues to rise .  today 's legislation will help address this problem .  association health plans will provide an employer-based solution to help the sector of the economy that is being hit the hardest : small businesses .  critics of the bill will come forward today and tell you how association health plans are going to lead to a devastating impact on small businesses and the insurance market .  well , from where i stand , it is hard to imagine that it could get any worse .  we have 45 million americans without health insurance and over half are small businesses and their employees .  this includes up to 7 million children that have family members working for small firms .  and for the last 5 years , small businesses have seen insurance costs increase by over 60 percent .  these are statistics that are so often stated in this town that we forget what the real impact is .  when an employer has to spend an additional $ 3 , 000 a year for coverage per employee year after year , it is easy to understand why some are dropping coverage all together .  we have a modest solution before us today that no one can claim will address all of the problems , but it can provide some help in a market that needs it .  i think it is important to talk about what association health plans are and what they are not .  these plans will be under the same set of rules that apply to corporate and union plans .  in fact , the requirements for association health plans are even more strict .  it will require that an association health plan have sufficient reserves to pay all claims .  it includes protections against cherry-picking to prevent adverse selection .  it provides a structure to ensure that the dol can monitor these plans .  critics will cite an outdated cbo study that does not even examine the legislation before us today .  will association health plans cure all of the problems when it comes to health insurance in the small group market ?  absolutely not .  but will it bring some elements of affordability and competition in these markets ?  i think so .  by some estimates , this bill is estimated to provide as many as 8 million americans with insurance , no small sum .  one of the best indicators as to whether ahps will increase competition is the strong opposition from insurance companies .  they are worried that they will lose their stranglehold on the small-group market .  these insurance companies with highly paid lobbyists from blue cross/blue shield , for example , that hold monopolies on state markets are worried that they will have to start negotiating premiums rather than dictating them .  i rise in strong support of this legislation .  i ask my colleagues to do the same .  just as important , i call on the senate to act on this legislation and the administration to put its full backing behind this bill .  this nation 's entrepreneurs deserve it .  