TO THE MEMBERS OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports H.R. 184, H.R. 6311, and H.R. 6199, which would repeal the medical device tax, suspend the health insurance tax, and improve flexibility for the use of Health Savings Account (HSA) and Flexible Savings Account (FSA) dollars. The Chamber will consider including votes related to these bills in our How They Voted scorecard.
The Chamber has long urged Congressional action to repeal three of the taxes enacted as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and H.R. 184 and H.R. 6311 would provide relief from two of these taxes. H.R. 184 would repeal the medical device tax that increases medical costs, and puts American medical device manufacturers at a competitive disadvantage. H.R. 6311 would extend the suspension of the health insurance tax for two more years until 2022.
The Chamber continues to support efforts to fully repeal the health insurance tax, which hits small businesses and seniors particularly hard through higher health insurance premiums. Finally, we urge members of the House and Senate to consider and pass legislation to repeal the so-called Cadillac tax.
The Chamber also supports the accompanying provisions in H.R. 6311 and H.R. 6199 that would expand flexibility in HSA-eligible HDHPs and encourage individual savings for future qualified medical expenses.
In particular, the Chamber supports the provisions in H.R. 6311 that would permitfirst dollar coverage flexibility for HSA-eligible high-deductible health plans; repeal the prohibition on using FSA and HSA dollars for over-the-counter products without a prescription; and inject additional flexibility into these accounts.
We urge the House to approve these three bills and seize the opportunity to not only reduce the cost of health coverage and protect American businesses, but also to inject additional flexibility into HSA-eligible HDHPs, which remain an increasingly popular form of coverage and savings.
Sincerely,
Suzanne P. Clark
Senior Executive Vice President
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
