NAHU Supports Legislation to Repeal the Cadillac Tax

Washington, D.C. — The National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) applauds Senators Dean Heller, R-Nev., and Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., on their announcement today introducing the “Middle Class Health Benefits Tax Repeal Act of 2015,’’ to repeal the Cadillac Tax.

The tax will impose a 40 percent excise tax on health plans that exceed certain cost thresholds ($10,200 for employee-only and $27,500 for family coverage) beginning in 2018.

“The Affordable Care Act (ACA) created the 40% excise tax for high-cost employer-sponsored health plans as a means of controlling health plan costs and as a funding mechanism for the law,” stated Janet Trautwein, CEO of NAHU. “However, the cost of medical care is what truly drives health insurance premiums and this tax does very little to rein in healthcare costs. And this new tax doesn’t just address excessively generous health plans – it also disproportionately impacts regular plans that cover high-cost individuals like older and less healthy employees and those who live in more high-cost areas.

“The 40% tax has no upside – not only does it not actually identify plans with ‘Cadillac’-type benefits, but is structured in such a way that many employers, from the smallest employer to the largest corporation, may have to reconsider their ability to offer coverage to employees at all. Those that do continue to offer coverage will be forced to drastically reduce benefits. These actions hurt the very middle class families the ACA was designed to protect.

“The members of NAHU work on a daily basis to help millions of individuals and employers purchase administer and utilize health insurance coverage. Over the past five years, our members have worked directly and tirelessly with employers of all sizes to help them implement ACA-related health plan changes. As such, NAHU will continue to support this bipartisan effort to repeal this inequitable tax and protect employer-sponsored health coverage.”

The National Association of Health Underwriters represents 100,000 professional health insurance agents and brokers who provide insurance for millions of Americans. NAHU is headquartered in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.nahu.org.