A liberal's conservative health plan
(Pardon me if this is too obvious or has already been debated.)
Years ago, before tax laws were changed to put a threshold on personal deductions, all medical expenses were tax-deductible.
I propose making all medical expenses eligible for a tax credit, rather than a mere deduction. A tax credit is like 100% money in the bank, as opposed to a tax deduction, which just credits you with your tax rate portion of an expense. You should be allowed to draw on the tax credit prior to your personal income tax filing, through an estimated tax system similar to what we have now, or through private financing, or through cuts in withholding.
If your medical expenses exceed your tax burden, the tax credit would be a "reverse income tax" situation.
Conservatives like tax relief, and liberals like health care relief, so this is a simple solution that we can all embrace.
Years ago, before tax laws were changed to put a threshold on personal deductions, all medical expenses were tax-deductible.
I propose making all medical expenses eligible for a tax credit, rather than a mere deduction. A tax credit is like 100% money in the bank, as opposed to a tax deduction, which just credits you with your tax rate portion of an expense. You should be allowed to draw on the tax credit prior to your personal income tax filing, through an estimated tax system similar to what we have now, or through private financing, or through cuts in withholding.
If your medical expenses exceed your tax burden, the tax credit would be a "reverse income tax" situation.
Conservatives like tax relief, and liberals like health care relief, so this is a simple solution that we can all embrace.
