Bill would extend Health Coverage Tax Credit

Employees who have lost their jobs due to foreign competition, as well as retirees in failed pension plans, again would be eligible for federal health insurance premium subsidies under legislation introduced Thursday in the U.S. Senate.

The subsidy, known as the Health Coverage Tax Credit, expired at the end of 2013. It had paid 72.5% of health care premiums for eligible beneficiaries — people who have lost their jobs due to foreign competition and retirees at least age 55 whose pension plans have been taken over by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.

The legislation, introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the ranking minority member on the Senate Finance Committee, would restore the subsidy through the end of 2019.

By extending the tax credit, “We are providing a crucial lifeline to workers who are transitioning between jobs by making it possible for them to maintain health insurance. This is the right thing to do, and it's plain common sense,” Sen. Wyden said in a statement.

A similar bill was introduced in the House of Representatives last year, but no action was taken on it.