Charleston, W. Va., March 28, 2013 – The Stop the HIT Coalition, a broad-based group representing the nation’s small business owners, their employees and the self-employed today raised concerns over how the new health insurance tax (HIT) will impact West Virginia jobs following the release of new state data.
The study released today by the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Research Foundation showed total employment in West Virginia will decline by 1,095 to 1,902 by 2022 as a direct result of the HIT. In addition, West Virginia’s overall gross domestic product (sales) will be reduced by at least $290 million over the next decade because of the HIT.
“Businesses in West Virginia already face significant regulatory and economic barriers to growth. Adding a tax that will cost the state jobs and revenue when we need to focus on rebuilding our economy is simply the wrong approach,” said Amanda Austin, NFIB Director of Federal Public Policy. “Instead we should foster growth by protecting small businesses and their employees from this destructive tax.”
The HIT is a new tax in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which, beginning in 2014, will impose over $100 billion in new taxes on the small business community, their employees and the self-employed over a decade. Former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin estimates the HIT will increase premiums on insurance policies purchased in the fully-insured market by $5,000 over the next decade. Eighty-eight percent of small businesses purchase their insurance in the fully-insured market.
The Stop the HIT Coalition has been working to repeal this punitive tax on families and small businesses. The Jobs and Premium Protection Act, a bill to repeal the HIT has been introduced by Reps. Charles Boustany (R-La.) and Jim Matheson (D-Utah) in the House of Representatives and Sens. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) in the Senate.
“West Virginia’s small businesses face enough challenges just to make ends meet,” said John Culler, owner of Beyond Marketing, in Wheeling, W.Va. “The HIT would be another obstacle to overcome, and obviously will have ramifications outside the small business community. Congress needs to repeal the HIT to avoid these job losses.”
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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.