Rep. Noem Introduces Bill Aimed at Decreasing Health Insurance Costs for Employers

WASHINGTON, May 25 -- Rep. Kristi Noem, R-South Dakota, issued the following news release:

Rep. Kristi Noem this week introduced the Health Insurance Premium Reduction Act, which would delay Obamacare's pricey Health Insurance Tax (HIT) by two years. The provision, if enacted, could save families and small businesses hundreds of dollars per year in healthcare premium costs.

"When it comes to health insurance under Obamacare, small businesses, which employ around 60 percent of South Dakotans, are taxed if they do and taxed if they don't," said Noem. "For this reason and more, Obamacare is a failed system that must be repealed. Until a comprehensive repeal bill can be put on President Trump's desk, however, I will fight to minimize the financial strain on South Dakota job creators. This legislation lifts a significant burden, saving consumers hundreds of dollars annually."

The HIT is a direct tax on health insurance providers for the services they provide to individuals, families, and other beneficiaries. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, this tax is passed on to consumers in the form of higher premiums and out-of-pocket costs. Additionally, the National Federation of Independent Business Research Foundation found the HIT will cost between 152,000 and 286,000 jobs by 2023, with 57 percent of those lost jobs represented in small businesses. Noem successfully delayed the HIT in 2019 through legislative language she wrote and President Trump signed. She has also voted more than 50 times in support of repealing Obamacare, in part or in whole.