Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise for the working men and women in our country who have well-deserved, hard-earned quality healthcare benefits to urge House leadership to bring to the floor H.R. 748, the Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act. This bill would finally fully repeal the 40 percent excise tax on certain employer-sponsored healthcare plans. For too long, the tax has been a looming threat. Make no mistake, this tax falls on everyday working families, including laborers, operating engineers, carpenters, pipefitters, painters, plumbers, ironworkers, transportation workers, firefighters, police, and many others, many who have fought for and won healthcare benefits in collective bargaining agreements. Among its many unintended effects, this excise tax has helped encourage the recent large increases in insurance plan deductibles, which especially hurt those with chronic illnesses. This repeal bill has been proposed for years. It is well past time to give it a vote on the House floor. The 40 percent excise tax on high-quality healthcare plans was enacted in the 2010 Affordable Care Act. The ACA has had many good effects, but it also had many flaws as enacted. We need to make the ACA work better for more Americans. And one provision that needs to be fixed is this tax. The tax was supposed to begin in 2018, but has been repeatedly delayed, reflecting the awareness of its negative impact. Right now, it is scheduled to take effect in 2022. It is time to just end it.…”