Barbara Boxer: “today, I am introducing the Health Insurance Tax Relief Act to help our Nation's working families deal with the recent…”

“today, I am introducing the Health Insurance Tax Relief Act to help our Nation's working families deal with the recent dramatic increases in health care costs. The legislation would allow taxpayers to deduct up to $2000 in out-of-pocket health insurance costs per year. While this small Federal contribution to assist families with the health care costs they bear will not solve all of the problems in our health care system, it will provide immediate help for working families who have seen health care costs explode. In 2001, the last year for which we have data, the cost of health care for employer sponsored insurance rose 11 percent. To deal with this increase, 75 percent of large employers and 42 percent of small business employers said they were likely to increase employee premium costs. In addition, according to the Center for Health System Change, employers will likely be raising deductibles and co-payments and perhaps using more coinsurance, where patients pay a percentage of the cost of their care rather than a fixed dollar amount. And, some businesses are dropping health insurance benefits entirely. This is an issue of fairness. We already provide a tax break for small business owners who provide health insurance, and we also provide one for individuals who are self-employed.”