Lawmakers Call for Health Insurance Tax Delay

November 1, 2019

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the House
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Kevin McCarthy
Republican Leader
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Speaker Pelosi and Leader McCarthy,

As new members of the U.S. House of Representatives, we write to request quick action to address health care affordability. Rising health care costs remain a primary concern for American families and small businesses, a message we hear frequently in our districts.

One way to immediately address these concerns and demonstrate our bipartisan commitment to lower health care costs is to prevent the return of the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) for 2020 and 2021 — thereby lowering health insurance premiums for consumers and protecting nearly half of all Americans from higher health care costs. We respectfully request your consideration of a delay of the HIT in appropriate legislation that will become law before the end of the year.

Congress has previously come together on a bipartisan basis to address this important issue, most recently by including a suspension of the tax for 2019 in a continuing resolution that was signed into law last year. A suspension of the HIT was enacted because there is broad recognition that the tax increases health care costs for consumers. Absent further Congressional action this year to delay the tax, the HIT will return, impacting approximately 142 million Americans.

According to an Oliver Wyman analysis, reinstatement of the HIT in 2020 would result in a premium increase of $479 for families with small group coverage and $458 for families with fully insured large group coverage. Additionally, seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage would see higher premiums, an average $241 increase for nearly 22 million seniors in Medicare Advantage plans. Consumers in the individual market and state Medicaid programs would also be impacted, seeing an estimated increase in premiums by $196 and $157 respectively. At a time when approximately 40% of Americans would struggle to cover an unexpected expense of $400, and many seniors live on fixed incomes, this tax would add an unnecessary financial burden for millions of Americans.

As Congress considers policies to bring down health care costs, acting immediately to extend a moratorium on the HIT for 2020 and beyond is a step Congress can take now to protect individuals and families, seniors, and small businesses from higher health care costs. As broader conversations on improving health care continue, we urge you to include a delay of the HIT for 2020 and 2021 in legislation that must pass before the end of the year, to deliver lower health care costs to millions of Americans across the country.

Sincerely,

Anthony Brindisi
Member of Congress

John Joyce, M.D.
Member of Congress

Haley M. Stevens
Member of Congress

TJ Cox
Member of Congress

Jefferson Van Drew
Member of Congress

Kelly Armstrong
Member of Congress

Dusty Johnson
Member of Congress

Chris Pappas
Member of Congress

Ben Cline
Member of Congress

Anthony Gonzalez
Member of Congress

Fred Keller
Member of Congress

Harley Rouda
Member of Congress

Guy Reschenthaler
Member of Congress

Pete Stauber
Member of Congress

Joe Cunningham
Member of Congress

Andy Kim
Member of Congress

Dan Crenshaw
Member of Congress

Michael Guest
Member of Congress

Ron Wright
Member of Congress

Daniel P. Meuser
Member of Congress

Lucy McBath
Member of Congress

Cindy Axne
Member of Congress

Greg Pence
Member of Congress

Gilbert R. Cisneros, Jr.
Member of Congress

Ross Spano
Member of Congress

Angie Craig
Member of Congress

Antonio Delgado
Member of Congress

Kim Schrier M.D.
Member of Congress

W. Gregory Steube
Member of Congress

Gregory F. Murphy, M.D.
Member of Congress

Jim Hagedorn
Member of Congress

Dan Bishop
Member of Congress

Debbie Mucarsel-Powell
Member of Congress

Donna E. Shalala
Member of Congress

Chrissy Houlahan
Member of Congress

Sharice L. Davids
Member of Congress

Ben McAdams
Member of Congress

Lance Gooden
Member of Congress

Susie Lee
Member of Congress

Denver Riggleman
Member of Congress

William R. Timmons, IV
Member of Congress

Bryan Steil
Member of Congress

Kendra S. Horn
Member of Congress

Lizzie Fletcher
Member of Congress

Michael Waltz
Member of Congress

Carol D. Miller
Member of Congress

Tim Burchett
Member of Congress

Abigail D. Spanberger
Member of Congress

Kevin Hern
Member of Congress

Van Taylor
Member of Congress

Abby Finkenauer
Member of Congress

CC:
The Honorable Richard E. Neal
Chairman
House Committee on Ways and Means
1102 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Kevin Brady
Ranking Member
House Committee on Ways and Means
1139 Longworth House Office
Building Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Frank Pallone
Chairman
House Committee on Energy and Commerce
2125 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Greg Walden
Ranking Member
House Committee on Energy and Commerce
2322 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515