AHIP to lobby against health insurance tax

America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), along with the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB), wants to repeal the health reform law's annual tax that would be assessed on insurance companies.

The two groups say the so-called premium tax--which would raise $8 billion in 2014 and then increase until it raises $14.3 billion in 2018--will be passed down to consumers, thereby driving up the cost of coverage. In fact, the tax could impact families by as much as 3 percent or nearly $5,000 over a decade, according to the AHIP Coverage blog.

"When you tax health insurance, you make health insurance more expensive," AHIP Vice President Michael Tuffin told the Washington Post. "This provision flies in the face of the goal of health reform: making health care more affordable."

To help prevent the tax from being implemented, AHIP and NFIB say they will jointly lobby members of Congress and have created a new website about the tax, reports The Hill's Healthwatch. AHIP also plans to introduce new advertisements, online videos, and commissioned papers detailing how the tax will lead to increased premiums for individuals and small businesses, the Post notes.

To learn more:
- read The Hill's Healthwatch article
- see the Washington Post story
- check out the AHIP Coverage blog post and website

Related Articles:
AHIP: ACOs should meet same standards as health plans
AHIP: ACO antitrust rules to drive provider consolidation 
AHIP donated $86M to lobby against health reform law