Could President Bushs Healthcare Tax Plan Help Individuals?
The healthcare insurance tax plan proposed by President Bush is designed to reduce the number of people who do not presently have health insurance reported by the Census Bureau to be 47 million in 2005, or 15.9 percent of the population. According to some healthcare experts, however, it could either increase or decrease the number of uninsured Americans by as much as 10 million, with much of the outcome determined by the proposal s impact on the individual insurance market. The President s proposal, covered in his January 2007 State of the Union Address, would eliminate tax-free treatment for employer health benefits, but offer a standard tax deduction of $7,500 for individuals and $15,000 for families. Supporters of the plan say it would be fairer than the current system, which favors people lucky enough to have access to employer-sponsored health insurance, and make insurance affordable for as many as five million uninsured Americans, many of them in the state of Texas. The President
