The House on Dec. 17 voted 216-211 to advance the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act (H.R. 6703). The Republican-led legislation aims to make it easier for small businesses to provide health insurance coverage to their employees by:
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Loosening restrictions on association health plans, in which small businesses pool their resources to purchase health coverage.
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Allowing employers to set aside pre-tax dollars to help their employees purchase health insurance via the ACA Marketplace Exchange through the establishment of so-called CHOICE plans.
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Enabling employers to purchase “stop-loss” insurance policies to help cover the cost of unexpected, catastrophic claims from their employees and dependents.
Notably, this package does not contain an extension of the enhanced premium tax credits (EPTCs), which are due to expire at the end of this year. The impending expiration of the credits — and an anticipated increase in 2026 plan year premiums as a result — has been a topic of intense debate in Congress, prompting a record-long government shutdown earlier this fall [refer to Washington Highlights, Oct. 3]. Last week, the Senate voted, and failed to pass, a measure that would extend the credits by an additional three years [refer to Washington Highlights, Dec. 12].
After failing to reach an agreement to vote on an amendment extending the EPTCs, four Republicans — Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), Rob Bresnahan (R-Pa.), and Ryan Mackenzie (R-Pa.) — broke with their party to support a Democrat-led discharge petition that would require the House to vote on legislation providing for a three-year extension of the subsidies. Under House rules, a discharge petition is subject to a mandatory waiting period of at least seven legislative days, so no vote on the matter can occur until next month.