Patient Power

How unions would benefit from fair tax treatment of insurance

From an op-ed in the Washington Post:

With union membership shrinking and wages strained, it might sound crazy to argue that labor should voluntarily give up a huge fringe benefit: tax-free health insurance provided by employers. But it should. In the long run, capping the amount of health insurance that employers can provide tax-free would raise workers’ wages, partially protect them from layoffs and speed rehiring after a downturn.

Read the whole piece here. For why the current tax treatment of medical insurance is bad, see here.

• Colorado Amendment 56: bad idea
• Colorado Amendment 56 destroys jobs for the poor, minorities, and women
• Obama and Big Business vs. a freer health insurance market
• Does anybody like Amendment 56?
• Colorado Amendment 56: immoral, impractical