Chuck Grassley: “As my colleagues have stated, we have to make health insurance more affordable. One thing Democrats and Republicans can…”

“As my colleagues have stated, we have to make health insurance more affordable. One thing Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that there are inequities in the tax treatment of health insurance. We all agree that Congress should level the playing field and expand access to health insurance; the question gets down to how. Proposals which have been introduced so far include the President's proposal, which includes a standard deduction for health insurance. Senator Burr, Senator Coburn, Senator Martinez, Senator Corker, and Senator Dole have formally introduced a tax credit proposal. Each proposal contemplates eliminating the exclusion for employer-provided coverage to meet this end. Currently, a taxpayer who receives health insurance through his or her employer is not taxed on the cost of the health coverage. Individuals who do not receive health coverage through their employer and are not employed and purchase health insurance on the individual market generally do not receive a tax benefit. As we just discussed, this problem is most acute in the small business context. Senator Wyden and Senator Bennett are also interested in fixing the health care system and making health insurance more affordable. Their proposal also contemplates amending the Tax Code for that purpose. I commend Senators Wyden and Bennett for their work in this area.”