Bill Text: NJ SCR161 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urges Congress and President to delay individual shared responsibility provision of federal health reform, and reverse decisions to delay out-of-pocket expenses cap and continue federal premium contributions for members of Congress and their staffs.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-09-12 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee [SCR161 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-SCR161-Introduced.html
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 161
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
215th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED SEPTEMBER 12, 2013
Sponsored by:
Senator SHIRLEY K. TURNER
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
SYNOPSIS
Urges Congress and President to delay individual shared responsibility provision of federal health reform, and reverse decisions to delay out-of-pocket expenses cap and continue federal premium contributions for members of Congress and their staffs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Concurrent Resolution urging the President of the United States and Congress to delay implementation of the individual shared responsibility provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and reverse the decisions to delay enforcement of out-of-pocket expenses caps and provide for federal contributions toward health care coverage premiums for members of Congress and their staffs.
Whereas, The federal "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act," Pub.L.111-148, as amended by the federal "Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010," Pub.L.111-152 (Affordable Care Act), contains numerous health care reform measures, including provisions intended to improve the availability, quality, and affordability of health insurance coverage; and
Whereas, The Affordable Care Act contains various tax credits and assessments, referred to as shared responsibility provisions, which apply to individuals, employers, and other stakeholders, and the individual shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act requires that, as of January 1, 2014, each United States citizen and legal resident not exempt under limited exclusions maintain health insurance coverage that provides specified minimum benefits, or pay $95 when filing his or her federal income tax return in 2014, which payment would increase annually and be $695 by 2016; and
Whereas, The employer shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act requires that, as of January 1, 2014, employers with at least 50 full-time equivalent employees offer health coverage to their full-time employees or pay a shared responsibility payment to the federal government of up to $3,000 per full-time employee in the first year of implementation of this provision; and
Whereas, In response to concerns raised by the business community, the employer shared responsibility provision of the Affordable Care Act is to be delayed for one year, so that employers will enjoy a one-year reprieve from the provision; however, the delay was not similarly extended to individuals, who are still required to obtain health care coverage by January 1, 2014 or be penalized; and
Whereas, A significant consumer protection provided in the Affordable Care Act that is aimed at improving affordability requires that, as of January 1, 2014, annual out-of-pocket costs for consumers be limited to $6,350 for individuals and $12,700 for families, yet in response to concerns raised by employers and insurers, it was recently announced that enforcement of this consumer protection provision will be delayed for one year, to the detriment of many Americans, who will incur extremely high out-of-pocket health care costs as a result; and
Whereas, Members of Congress and their aides currently enjoy significant contributions from the federal government toward their health care premiums, specifically, $5,000 per year for individual coverage and $11,000 per year for covering a family, and it was recently announced that federal regulations were amended in order to enable these contributions to continue after January 1, 2014; and
Whereas, It is patently unfair to struggling American families that the one-year delayed implementation of the shared responsibility provision applies only to employers and not to individuals, that enforcement of annual out-of-pocket expense caps intended to protect consumers from unaffordable health care costs is being delayed for one year, and that members of Congress and certain of their staffs will continue to enjoy significant financial contributions toward their health care premiums after January 1, 2014; and
Whereas, In addition to the above-noted burdens imposed on struggling Americans, the temporary Social Security payroll tax reductions of 2011 and 2012, which were meant to help lower and middle-class taxpayers weather the recession, reverted back to their higher rates on January 1, 2013, and thus employees and the self-employed are receiving smaller paychecks just when they need to save money in order to purchase health insurance or pay a tax penalty, and it is only fair to enable them to have a year to get on more secure financial footing; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):
1. The President and Congress of the United States are respectfully requested to: grant a one-year delay of the individual shared responsibility provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; impose the out-of-pocket expense cap on January 1, 2014 that would protect consumers from unaffordable health care costs; and reverse the recently-announced amendment to regulations providing for significant federal governmental contributions toward the health care premiums of members of Congress and their staffs.
2. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and President of the Senate and attested by the Clerk of the General Assembly and the Secretary of the Senate, shall be transmitted to the President and Vice-President of the United States, the Majority and Minority Leaders of the United States Senate, the Speaker and Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, and every member of Congress elected from this State.
STATEMENT
This bill respectfully requests that the President and Congress of the United States grant a one-year delay of the individual shared responsibility provision of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; impose the out-of-pocket expense cap on January 1, 2014 that would protect consumers, and reverse the regulations providing for continued federal government contributions toward the health care premiums of members of Congress and their aides. The various changes regarding implementation of the act that benefit employers, insurers, and members of Congress and their staffs, ignore and are to the detriment of average struggling Americans.
