Salt Lake City, UT., February 14, 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 U.S. Representative Jim Matheson (D-3rd District) for the introduction of bipartisan legislation, co-sponsored by Representative Charles Boustany (R-LA), that seeks to repeal the Health Insurance Tax (HIT) included in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA).
“We are encouraged by the introduction of this vital bipartisan legislation to preserve the health and financial security of small businesses across the country,” said NFIB President and CEO Dan Danner. “We hope members of Congress will join together to fix this unintended consequence of the President’s healthcare law and prevent yet another hit to small businesses and the Americans and families they employ.”
Throughout Utah, there has been rising concern about the cost of healthcare, and the HIT has been referenced as one of the chief factors. With more than 241,692 small businesses that employ 1,114,700 workers, this tax could deal a significant blow to Utah’s economy.
“Since the President’s health care bill was signed into law, we have taken a hard look at the potential impact on our bottom line,” said xxx of xxxxx Company. “If the HIT is allowed to proceed next year, the rise in costs will make it very difficult for us to provide health care for all of our employees. That means our people will have to dig deeper into their wallets, further straining their finances and the economy overall. The legislation introduced today will prevent this domino effect by eliminating this harmful provision of Obamacare.”
The HIT is a discriminatory tax born from the President’s health care plan, the PPACA, which will impose $101.7 billion in new taxes on the small business community, their employees and the self-employed. The HIT does not sunset and is expected to cost each family approximately $5,000 in higher premiums over the decade according to an analysis by former CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin.
The HIT is especially misguided as it is cloaked as a fee, when it is surely a tax, that is placed on insurance providers and will undoubtedly be passed on to small businesses, their employees and the self-employed. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has confirmed this, stating that the HIT “would be largely passed through to consumers [small and family-owned businesses] in the form of higher premiums for private coverage.” Increasing the cost of health insurance plans for small business owners and the self-employed make offering affordable coverage, or any coverage at all, to employees more difficult.
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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.