Senate Health Bill Can’t Be Fixed
Latest Changes Do Not Affect Bill’s Core Features
End Notes
[1] Robert King, “Senate Bill Adds Opioid Money, HSA Changes to Health Bill to Woo Holdouts,” Washington Examiner, June 29, 2017, http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/senate-adds-opioid-money-hsa-changes-to-health-bill-to-wooholdouts/article/2627422.
[2] Lisa Clemans-Cope et al., “Medicaid Coverage of Effective Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder,” Urban Institute, updated June 2017, http://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/90461/2001287_medicaid_coverage_of_effective_treatment_for _opioid_use_disorder_1.pdf.
[3] Emily Gee and Richard Frank, “Senate’s Opioid Fund Cannot Substitute for Coverage,” Center for American Progress, June 20, 2017, https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/news/2017/06/20/434708/senates-opioid-fundcannot-substitute-health-coverage/.
[4] Peggy Bailey, “Extra Opioid Funding Wouldn’t Undo Senate Health Bill’s Harm,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, June 30, 2017, https://www.cbpp.org/blog/extra-opioid-funding-wouldnt-undo-senate-health-bills-harm .
[5] Susannah Luthi, Michelle M. Stein, and Erin Raftery, “Separate Opioid Fund Could Limit Care for Addicts, Experts Warn,” Inside Health Policy, June 14, 2017.
[6] Robert King, “Senate Bill Adds Opioid Money, HSA Changes to Health Bill to Woo Holdouts,” Washington Examiner, June 29, 2017, http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/senate-adds-opioid-money-hsa-changes-to-health-bill-to-wooholdouts/article/2627422.
People with employer plans already have the option to pay the employee share of health insurance premiums with pre-tax dollars. (On the other hand, people with employer plans are not eligible for the premium tax credits available to moderate-income marketplace consumers.)
[7] Examples draw on the examples provided by CBO for the Senate bill. To calculate tax savings from paying premiums through an HSA, we assume that consumers contribute to HSAs up to the (Senate bill’s) contribution limits.
[8] Edwin Park, “Senate GOP Adding Another High-Income Tax Break to Health Bill,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, June 29, 2017, https://www.cbpp.org/blog/senate-gop-adding-another-high-income-tax-break-to-health-bill.
[9] Caitlin Owens, “Senate Asks for CBO Score With, Without Cruz Proposal,” Axios, July 1, 2017, https://www.axios.com/senate-asks-for-cbo-score-with-without-cruz-proposal-2451585212.html.
[10] Sarah Lueck, “Cruz Amendment Would Worsen Already Harmful Senate Health Bill for People with Medical Conditions,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, July 12, 2017, https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/cruz-amendment-would-worsen-already-harmful-senate-health-bill-for-people-with.
[11] Richard Rubin and Siobhan Hughes, “Some Senators in Health Talks Would Keep Tax on Investment Income,” Wall Street Journal, updated June 29, 2017, https://www.wsj.com/articles/some-senators-in-health-talks-would-keep-tax-oninvestment-income-1498757176.
[12] Brandon DeBot, “Wealthy, Corporations Still Win Big Under Revised Senate GOP Health Bill,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, July 13, 2017, https://www.cbpp.org/blog/wealthy-corporations-still-win-big-under-revised-senate-gop-health-bill.
[13] Sarah Lueck, “If Senate Republican Health Bill Weakens Essential Health Benefits Standards, It Would Harm People With Pre-Existing Conditions,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, June 12, 2017, https://www.cbpp.org/research/health/if-senate-republican-health-bill-weakens-essential-health-benefits-standards-it.