The Secure and Affordable Health Care Act of 2008 proposes a health care contribution for employers based on a percentage of wages paid. The policy applies to wages up to the Social Security maximum wagebase. Firms with payrolls of $250,000 or less would pay a 1% contribution, firms with payrolls between $250,000 and $1 million would pay a 4% contribution, firms with payrolls between $1 million and $15 million would pay a 6% contribution, and firms with payrolls over $15 million would pay a 6.5% contribution. Contribution amounts are offset by firms' health expenditures. The majority of workers are in firms with payrolls above $15 million. The proposed initiative would impact payroll costs for California firms, with nearly half of all firms (47.3%) required to make no additional payments and 82% of firms making payments of less than 1%.
