FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Erin Dixon; edixon@reservoircg.com
Wisconsin Business and Farm Leaders Urge Congress to
Immediately Delay the Health Insurance Tax
MADISON, WI (November 15, 2017) – Wisconsin’s leading advocates for farmers and businesses were joined by small business owners today in calling on Congress to delay the Health Insurance Tax, or HIT, during a tele-press conference. The discussion included representatives from the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation and Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and a small manufacturer from Genoa City. Attendees expressed concerns about the impact of the HIT on Wisconsin small business and farmers if the tax is not delayed next year.
“Us small business owners have enough challenges to deal with,” said Steve White, owner of Electronic Specialties, Inc in Genoa City. “We need our leaders in Washington to act now to prevent this damaging tax from coming back on line.”
“The HIT is a hit to the bottom line for many family farmers in Wisconsin,” said Karen Gefvert, Director of Governmental Relations for the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation. “If Congress does not act to delay the HIT for next year, that will likely lead to more farmers struggling with how to purchase affordable and adequate health coverage.”
“Delaying the HIT has strong bipartisan support and is a simple step Congress can take to help reduce the increase in premiums we are seeing for 2018,” said Chris Reader, Director of Health & Human Resources Policy for Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce.
The HIT, which was suspended for 2017, is a federal tax on health insurance plans purchased in the fully insured market – which is where most small business owners, the self-employed, and farmers purchase their health plans. Without action by Congress to delay the tax, the HIT is expected to increase premiums nationwide by $14.3 billion next year, when the tax goes into effect in January. A recent study by Oliver Wyman shows that families in the small employer market could be faced with $500 on average in higher premiums in 2018 as a result of the HIT. The HIT will also cost the state’s Medicaid program $34 million if it is allowed to go back into effect.
Speaker Paul Ryan and Senator Ron Johnson has supported legislation in Congress that would delay implementation of the HIT tax. The effort to prevent a tax hike in the form of the HIT has been a top priority for small businesses and the employer community, from the hospitality industry to the agricultural sector.
According to research by the National Federation of Independent Business Research Foundation, the HIT will jeopardize between 152,000 to 286,000 private-sector jobs across the U.S. by 2023, and reduce real GDP by as much as $20 billion to $33 billion over the same period.
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The Stop The HIT Coalition represents the nation’s small business owners, their employees and the self-employed who are actively working to repeal the Health Insurance Tax. Since the Coalition’s formation in 2011, it has grown to include more than 35 national organizations, representing millions of small business owners across the country. For more information, please visit www.StopTheHIT.com.