PORTLAND, Ore., March 19, 2013 – The Stop the HIT Coalition, a broad-based group representing the nation’s small business owners, their employees and the self-employed, today commended Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) for introducing legislation to repeal the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).
“Senators Barrasso and Hatch took a critical step today in protecting the financial futures of millions of small businesses and their employees,” said National Federation of Independent Business President and CEO Dan Danner. “By protecting small businesses from yet another burdensome tax, this bill will ensure companies can continue to hire and offer a much-needed boost to their local economies.”
The HIT is an often-overlooked small business tax in the President’s health care law that threatens to raise premiums by an estimated $500 a year for small business owners, their employees and the self-employed. With more than 340,000 small businesses that employ over 1.4 million workers, this tax could serve as a chief obstacle to Oregon’s economic growth.
According to a study released today by the National Federation of Independent Business Research Foundation, the HIT would reduce private sector employment by between 146,000 and 262,000 in 2022. Roughly 59 percent of these job losses will fall on small businesses. The survey also showed that the added tax would reduce U.S. real output (sales) in 2022 by between $19 billion to $35 billion.
“Small businesses are the backbone of any community so it’s good to see our leaders in Washington taking steps to protect them, and their employees, against a tax that will have a direct impact on the lives of so many,” said Charles P. Jones, president of Chuck Jones & Associates in Portland. “Stopping the HIT will give businesses a better opportunity to grow and add more employees.”
Over the course of the next 10 years, the HIT will impose more than $100 billion in new taxes on health care plans in the fully-insured market, where 88 percent of small businesses and the self-employed purchase insurance. According to an analysis by former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin, every family affected by the HIT can expect to pay approximately $5,000 in higher premiums over the decade.
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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.