[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 82 (Thursday, June 12, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S5552]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 DEDUCTIBILITY OF HEALTH CARE PREMIUMS

  Mr. BOND. Mr. President, I would like to take just a few minutes of 
the Senate's time to discuss an issue of great importance to the self-
employed throughout the country, that of making health insurance more 
affordable.
  Nearly 1.4 million children who live in families headed by a mother 
or father who is self-employed do not have health insurance. If you 
work for yourself, typically health insurance is very expensive for 
both you and your family.
  Congress has an opportunity to make it more affordable for families 
who work for themselves by treating them fairly under the Tax Code.
  Currently, large corporations can deduct 100 percent of their share 
of the employee's health care costs, while the self-employed farmer, 
child care provider, or truck driver can only deduct 40 percent. That 
is totally unfair.
  It is time that Congress changed the law to allow the self-employed 
to deduct the full cost of health care premiums. Last year, we worked 
with Senator Kassebaum to move the deductibility up gradually to 80 
percent of the premiums by the year 2006.
  That is a great start. Most families cannot afford to wait until the 
year 2006 to get sick. We want that health care deductibility. That is 
part of the Home Based Business Fairness Act that is also very 
important in small business.
  On Tuesday, Senator Durbin and I sent a letter to the Senate Finance 
Committee that was signed by 53 Senators, a majority of the Senate, 
urging them to set aside the money to provide 100-percent health care 
deductibility. And we truly hope that they will.
  We are confident that with this broad support we can make health 
insurance more affordable for the families who depend upon the earnings 
of a self-employed father or mother.
  I thank the Chair.

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