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Health Care Deduction Proposal Dies in Committee

April 23, 1998
By: Caroline Noel
State Capital Bureau A bill allowing tax deductions for health care premiums has died on a Committtee floor and the bill's sponsor is crying foul. Caroline Noel reports from the Capital.

St. Louis Representative David Levin received bi-partisan support for health care tax deduction proposal. The Ways and Means Committee even unamiously approved it in late February. But Committee Chair Joan Bray didn't hand the bill to the full House until Wednesday, virtually guaranteeing that it will not be debated this session.

Actuality:"I haven't run into anyone who has disagreed with the bill and it's unbelievable that we have a system where a committee chair can sit on a bill that has such wide bi-partisan support."
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Bray says that a large number of bills receive unanimous support and that there's only room for a limited number to be debated. She adds that Levin's proposal would have cost the state 81 million dollars in lost revenue. Caroline Noel, the Capital.

Date: April 23, 1998

By: Caroline C. Noel

State Capital Bureau A bill that would have allowed individuals to claim tax deductions for out-of-pocket health care premiums will NOT make it to the House floor this session. Caroline Noel reports from Jefferson City.

The bill received bipartisan support in the House and even unanimous approval in the Ways and Means Committee. But Committee Chair Joan Bray sit on the bill until Wednesday, making it too late to act on this session. She insists it wasn't a true top priority, and its widespread support was just election year politics.

Actuality:"It's easy to vote for things like that in committee even tough when you relly get down to making choices of what we should really be doing, this may not be unanimous."
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Bill sponsor David Levin says he will modify the bill to allow outright tax credits for out-of-pocket health care costs, and will re-introduce it next session. From the Capital this is Caroline Noel.