A Republican senator and member of the Senate Finance Committee introduced a bipartisan bill to remove the Cadillac tax from the Affordable Care Act.
Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), who grilled Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Tom Price this week, was joined by Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) in presenting legislation this month aimed at ending the 40% tax provision on health plans valued at more than $10,200 for individual coverage and $27,500 for families.
The Cadillac tax, long a point of contention for critics of the ACA, is set to go in effect in 2020. Employers, too, have consistently called for its repeal, arguing that compliance with the tax would be a time-consuming and expensive administrative burden.
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On Jan. 3, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee introduced a resolution that would remove the Cadillac tax from the ACA, as well. U.S. Representative Mike Kelly (R-PA) presented H.R. 173, the Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2017, to end the provision.
On his website, Kelly writes, “The Cadillac tax is a major reason why the so-called Affordable Care Act will make healthcare even less affordable and accessible for so many households across America. Sensible health care policy should encourage employers to offer a full range of health plans to their associates, not punish them with an unfair tax for doing so. The sad result will be higher deductibles and fewer services for hardworking Americans. With most Pennsylvanians covered by employer-sponsored health insurance, this Obamacare tax will be a disaster felt especially close to home.”
H.R. 173 is co-sponsored by Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT).
