National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the nation’s oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, applauds the release of the House Republicans’ health care plan.
Brandon Arnold, NTU’s Executive Vice President, stated: “The American Health Care Act is an important first step toward fully repealing Obamacare and replacing it with a patient-centered, free market solution for all Americans. It contains bold provisions that would reduce taxes, empower individual health care consumers, shift power from Washington to state capitals, and restrain government overreach.
“Taxpayers should be particularly pleased to see that nearly all of the Obamacare tax increases will be repealed upon passage of this bill. Tax hikes like the health insurance tax, the 'medicine cabinet' tax, the medical device tax, and the prescription drug tax have all increased the cost of health care to the great detriment of consumers. Getting rid of all of these is a big victory for taxpayers. Additionally, the bill would scrap the egregious individual and employer mandates, which effectively act as taxes.”
Some conservatives have expressed concern about the bill’s inclusion of a means-tested tax credit that would be provided to individuals who do not have access to insurance through their employers or via government programs. However, this is an appropriate way to empower individuals and families as the system transitions away from Obamacare’s complex, cumbersome credits and government-imposed mandates. As Arnold notes, “The tax credit will put consumers, instead of the federal government, in charge of their own insurance options. Making this tax credit advanceable and refundable ensures that all Americans – regardless of their level of income – will have access to affordable insurance. This is particularly important for assisting workers with limited financial means.”
Arnold acknowledged that the legislation is far from perfect. He stated, “To be sure, there is much more work to do. This legislation does not repeal all of Obamacare’s regulations and leaves in place the so-called ‘Cadillac tax’ on higher-cost insurance plans.”
“This bill is a necessary first step in a long process to repeal and replace Obamacare," Arnold concluded. "NTU hopes Congress will promptly send the legislation to the President’s desk and continue working to implement critical, free market health care policies on behalf of American taxpayers.”