Bond seeks acceleration of health insurance deductible

Sen. Christopher Bond continues to fight for full deductibility of health insurance premiums for the self-employed.

Bond Sept. 16 sent a letter to the Senate Finance Committee chairman asking Chairman William Roth to include provisions that will accelerate the full deductibility of health insurance premiums for the self-employed in tax legislation the committee may consider in the final weeks of the 105th Congress, according to a release from the Senate Committee on Small Business.

Calling it his No. 1 small-business priority, Bond called the full deduction "simple fairness long overdue," the release stated.

In the letter, Bond said, "last year, we scored an enormous victory in the Taxpayer Relief Act by increasing the self-employed health-insurance deduction to 100 percent. That bill, however, still requires the self-employed to wait until 2007 before they can deduct all of their health-insurance costs. The sooner we can provide full deductibility, the sooner more than 5 million individuals in self-employed families will have better access to affordable health-care coverage. Nine more years is simply too long to keep these hardworking Americans waiting."

Bond's provision in last year's Taxpayer Relief Act raises the self-employed health insurance deduction to 80 percent in 2003 and 100 percent in 2007. Prior to that legislation, the deductible percentage would have been capped at 80 percent in 2006. Bond said he has always been committed to full deductibility as soon as possible.[[In-content Ad]]