This is absolutely true! I believe that the current structure and cost of healthcare in the US is one of the largest detriments to entrepreneurship. This is never brought up in political debates and is rarely talked about in media. Before the ACA, providers would deny people applying for individual coverage for the silliest pre-existing conditions and once you were denied, you wen't getting healthcare anywhere (black list).
This was a huge struggle for me early on in my career--and it wasn't until our company had a group (3+ people) that would could affordable plans. Even then, we were paying over $1000/mo to insure 3 healthy 26-year-olds.
"This means that many entrepreneurs and innovators—those of us paving the way on our own—are left with costly insurance or no insurance at all. Because of the limited choices for affordable healthcare, the decision to become an entrepreneur looks increasingly less attractive. Even if an individual is to secure an individual policy, the rates will be higher, and the coverage will be less than policies available through an employer."
I've always thought it would be cool to have employers offer "MAKEation" days instead of vacation days. This would be time accumulated to take a month, a quarter, or even a year off to build your own product/service/dream. The company offering this would also provide mentors, resources, and periodic sit-downs to discuss investment into your new product/service/dream. You maintain your insurance throughout this time also. When you return to work, instead of having a meeting to "be brought back up to speed", you discuss with managers how to integrate your new business into the company, what you learned, and then make a presentation to the rest of your business/department. The idea being that every business can be it's own incubator of sorts. I would imagine this would attract top talent to your company, allow for new sources of revenue, keep your business fresh, and promote innovation among those that might otherwise be more risk-averse.
"In addition to" vacation days, I could see it, but in lieu of? No thanks.
Taking time away from work is an important part of my mental health. The last thing North American culture needs is another way for corporations to replace leisure time with yet more work.
This was a huge struggle for me early on in my career--and it wasn't until our company had a group (3+ people) that would could affordable plans. Even then, we were paying over $1000/mo to insure 3 healthy 26-year-olds.
You can read more about my story here: http://thecreativecareer.com/2009/03/30/us-healthcare-system...
EDIT (In case the above is TL;DR):
"This means that many entrepreneurs and innovators—those of us paving the way on our own—are left with costly insurance or no insurance at all. Because of the limited choices for affordable healthcare, the decision to become an entrepreneur looks increasingly less attractive. Even if an individual is to secure an individual policy, the rates will be higher, and the coverage will be less than policies available through an employer."