Healthcare Reform Doesn't Kill Jobs

Healthcare and the economy are two of the major issues in this year's presidential election. Voters across the country are wondering what impact the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will have on the recovering economy, particularly employment.

According to a report from The Urban Institute Health Policy Center, a close examination of healthcare reform in Massachusetts may serve as a case study for how national reform will impact jobs if it is fully implemented in 2014.

The study posits that healthcare reform will have little effect on employment. It cites data reflecting overall GDP growth in Massachusetts as well as private-sector employment rates that were better relative to the rest of the country from when reform was enacted in 2006, through the recession to 2010. 

Some economists have previously argued that requiring employers to provide health insurance would inhibit hiring and lead to salary reductions and reduction of other benefits. But will healthcare reform result in 'killing jobs'?