The House Ways and Means Committee approved seven bills on Wednesday that aim to give Americans more access to health care, more choices and more flexibility.
U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), the chairman of the committee, said that the bills were all products of a recent Subcommittee on Health hearing that explored tax-related proposals to improve health care.
The bipartisan Small Business Health Care Relief Act, H.R. 5447, introduced by U.S. Reps. Charles Boustany (R-LA) and Mike Thompson (D-CA), would allow employers to use Health Reimbursement Arrangements (HRAs) for employees to purchase insurance on the individual market.
Guidance issued by the Treasury Department found that HRAs do not satisfy the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) minimum benefit and annual dollar cap requirements for employer sponsored plans.
“The Small Business Healthcare Relief Act is a common-sense, bipartisan solution ensuring our small businesses aren’t penalized for trying to do the right thing,” Boustany said. “HRAs are an affordable solution for both employees and employers to combat the escalating cost of health insurance. I urge House leadership to bring this bill to the House floor as soon as possible to grant relief to small businesses suffering under these harsh penalties.”
The Halt Tax Increases on the Middle Class and Seniors Act, H.R. 3590, introduced by U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ), was also approved by the committee.
The bill would allow people with high health care costs to deduct medical costs exceeding 7.5 percent of their adjusted gross income from taxes. Under the ACA, the deduction limit for medical costs was increased to 10 percent of adjusted gross income.
“For the past year, we’ve worked hard to build the support needed to move this bill ahead in Congress,” McSally said. “We’ve gathered support from members of both parties and advocacy groups, made the case to the relevant committee, and continued to raise awareness of this looming tax hike on seniors. Our seniors worked hard their entire lives for a secure retirement. They should not be on the hook now for the massive new spending authorized under the health care act, and I will continue to fight to stop this tax hike on them and roll it back on middle class families.”
The committee also approved the Tribal Employment and Jobs Protection Act, H.R. 3080, that was cosponsored by U.S. Rep. Kristi Noem (R-SD) to exempt tribes from ACA’s employer mandate.
“We know one of the best ways to fight poverty is by creating opportunity within the job market,” Noem said. “The Affordable Care Act’s employer mandate compromises healthy economic growth. This is especially true in Indian Country where the federal government already assumes responsibility for healthcare access, making this job-killing mandate duplicative and even more damaging. I’m hopeful we can see this bipartisan legislation signed into law, eliminating a costly mandate and saving jobs.”
Additionally, the committee approved U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen’s (R-MN) Health Care Security Act, H.R. 5445, to expand access to health savings accounts — increasing contribution limits, allowing catch up contributions and allowing more flexibility between expenses.
The committee also approved the Native Americans Health Savings Improvement Act, H.R. 5452, sponsored by U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI) to improve access to HSAs for those who receive services through Indian Health Services.