"We have a ways to go, but we are going to get health-care reform passed this year because the need is so great. - Max Baucus | U.S. Senator from Montana

 Now that the focus of the health care debate has turned to a small group of legislators in Washington, I am reminded of  David Borris, owner of Hell's kitchen catering in Northbrook, who testified April 22, 2009 at a House Ways and Means Committee.

 Mr. Borris’s testimony regarding his experiences with group insurance has an all too familiar tone:

 “I will pay approximately the same amount to insure half of my full time staff as I pay in rent in 2009. Surely, this is deeply broken. There must be a better way.”

 Mr. Burris echoes a sentiment that is shared by most Americans:

 “I want to make one thing perfectly clear: as a small business owner, I’m willing to contribute to get good health coverage for my employees. I want to be able to do that, but it’s becoming all too obvious for me that I’m not going to be able to keep doing it alone. That’s why I support the idea of a system of shared responsibility – where businesses, employees, government, providers – where we all pitch in to make it work.”

 Here's David Borris's complete testimony: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyPY5lu-sow

 Read David Borris’s complete testimony: http://waysandmeans.house.gov/hearings.asp?formmode=printfriendly&id=7675OP

Opinion from Astro National Insurance Agency in Oak Brook, Illinois