(a) As small business owners and sole proprietors are the life blood of this state’s economy, a recent change in the federal Affordable Care Act effective on January 1, 2016, has caused irreparable harm to the economic well-being of small business owners and sole proprietors by requiring them to secure health insurance coverage on the individual market as opposed to securing health insurance coverage on the small group market. (b) In an effort to reduce and/or eliminate the irreparable economic harm, the director of the department of administration, with assistance from the commissioner of health insurance, shall seek a waiver under section 1332 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Pub. L. No. 111-148, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, Pub. L. No. 111-152, for the purpose of allowing businesses classified as self-employed and sole proprietors to purchase insurance in the small group market through the HealthSource RI for employers SHOP program and not be forced into the individual market.
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