[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 152 (Friday, December 12, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Page S6772]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   STATEMENT OF SENATORS WYDEN, HATCH, HARKIN, ALEXANDER, SESSIONS, 
   CARPER, TOOMEY, COONS, AND RUBIO IN SUPPORT OF DIVISION M OF THE 
   CONSOLIDATED AND FURTHER CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2015, THE 
              EXPATRIATE HEALTH COVERAGE CLARIFICATION ACT

       The undersigned submit the following Statement for the 
     Record in support of Division M of the Consolidated and 
     Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, the Expatriate 
     Health Coverage Clarification Act, as amended by Senators 
     Carper, Toomey, Coons, and Rubio.
       The Expatriate Health Coverage Clarification Act is a 
     bipartisan, technical clarification of health insurance law, 
     intended to place U.S. expatriate health insurers on equal 
     footing with their foreign counterparts. We look forward to 
     the passage of Division M and are grateful for the bipartisan 
     coalition that has worked so constructively to find a path 
     forward.
       The purpose of this bipartisan and technical bill is to 
     ensure that U.S. health insurers who provide expatriate 
     health insurance plans encounter the same legal requirements 
     and expectations as foreign expatriate health insurers. 
     Further, it is important to clarify that the intent of the 
     language regarding the application of section 4980I of the 
     Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to ``qualified expatriates'' 
     who are ``assigned'' to work in the United States means that, 
     notwithstanding other provisions in the Expatriate Health 
     Coverage Clarification Act, the excise tax continues to apply 
     in the case of highly skilled qualified expatriates, as 
     defined by this legislation, who are newly assigned to work 
     within the United States in a specialty occupation and should 
     not apply with respect to qualified expatriates working in 
     the United States with L, E, O, and R visa classifications. 
     Furthermore, this legislation is not intended to expand the 
     universe of eligible employer-sponsored coverage to which 
     section 4980I applies.
       The Department of the Treasury will be drafting regulations 
     to implement the portions of Expatriate Health Coverage 
     Clarification Act that fall within its responsibility. It is 
     important to highlight the definition of ``qualified 
     expatriates'' who are ``assigned'' to work in the United 
     States because it is the intent of Congress that the Treasury 
     regulation relating to Expatriate Health Coverage 
     Clarification Act, and code section 4980I, in particular be 
     promulgated and implemented in a timely and workable manner.

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