July 24, 2018

U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Representative,

You are scheduled to vote this week on three healthcare-related bills that would expand the use of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs); lower insurance premiums; empower and provide Americans with more choices in purchasing healthcare products; and, eliminate harmful taxes that were imposed upon consumers and businesses in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), or Obamacare.

The bills are H.R. 184, the Protect Medical Innovation Act of 2018; H.R. 6199, the Restoring Access to Medication and Modernizing Health Savings Accounts Act of 2018; and H.R. 6311, Increasing Access to Lower Premium Plans and Expanding Health Savings Accounts Act of 2018. On behalf of the more than 1 million members and supporters of the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW), I urge you to vote in favor of these three bills.

·         H.R. 184 would eliminate the innovation-harming 2.3 percent excise tax on the sales price of a medical device that was levied in ACA. According to a June 5, 2018, study by Iowa University Assistant Professor Daeyong Lee, the tax reduced research and development spending by $34 million, sales revenue by $188 million, gross margins by $375 million, and earnings by $68 million in 2013. While a moratorium has been placed on the medical device tax since 2016, it is time to permanently remove the tax to encourage investment in the research-intensive medical device industry.

·         H.R. 6199 combines bipartisan bills that were passed out of the Ways and Means Committee on July 11 and 12. The legislation would reverse the restriction ACA placed on using tax-favored savings accounts to purchase over-the-counter medicines; allow feminine hygiene products to be a qualified medical expense; provide flexibility for HSA-eligible plans to offer first-dollar coverage to a certain amount; allow Direct Primary Care provider fees to be a qualified medical expense; and, add certain fitness and sport expenses to be treated as qualified medical expense up to a limited amount to encourage exercise and improvement of personal health.

·         H.R. 6311 also combines several bills that were passed out of the Ways and Means Committee. It would expand the use of HSAs and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs), and provide relief for certain ACA restrictions. The bill would allow working seniors who are enrolled in Medicare Part A to continue to contribute to an HSA through their employer-sponsored plan; nearly double the maximum contribution to an HSA to equal the amount of a deductible and out-of-pocket limitation costs; enable rolling over leftover FSA funds up to three times the annual limit, thus changing the “use it or lose it” requirement that encourages unnecessary spending; allow anyone to purchase a lower cost, catastrophic health insurance plan; and permit individuals enrolled in catastrophic and Bronze plans access to HSAs.

Again, I urge you to support these bills. All votes on H.R. 184, H.R. 6199, and H.R. 6311 will be among those considered for CCAGW’s 2018 Congressional Ratings.

Sincerely,

Tom Schatz
President, CCAGW

Click for PDF