This article provides an overview of the main goals of President Obama’s plan for health care reform as well as the two proposed Senate bills, Senate Bill 1679 and 1796, and the House of Representatives bill that passed, House Bill 3962, as it relates to small business. Small businesses are facing the steep rising costs of health insurance premiums to add to their current burdens of dealing with the recession’s credit freeze and lower revenue generation with other high operating costs. This article provides analysis on the pros and cons of health care reform in relation to small businesses based on three aspects of the health care reform proposals. The first is the public option government run health care plan, second is the Exchange a government-regulated marketplace of insurance plans, and finally, tax credits for small businesses to offset the cost of buying health insurance for their employees. Finally, the article provides a brief review of the response from the insurance industry based on their reports highlighting the potential new costs of health care for small businesses if reform passes. [More]

This article reviews the importance of non-profits to the American economy and statistics regarding the financial struggles of non-profits during the current recession. The article provides background as to some of the causes for the decline in donations to non-profits, such as less contribution from bank and corporate executives as well as a decrease in individual donations. Additionally explored are the findings and statistics from reports and surveys that provide an overview of the current financial struggle for many non-profits. Furthermore, issues such as ways in which non-profits are coping with the impact of the current financial crisis on their operations and customers are explored, culminating in a demonstration of resilience on the part of many non-profits even in the face of tough times. Finally, this article provides insight into advice from the legal community regarding steps lawyers should take when counseling such non-profits as well as providing a recommendation and conclusion as to the steps those non-profits should keep in mind while coping through the recession. [More]