House Bill Could Create an Unlimited LTCI Premium Deduction

News August 12, 2024 at 08:15 AM
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An older person using a walker.

A House Republican has come up with an idea for paying for an unlimited long-term care insurance premium tax deduction: reduce the value of energy efficiency and pollution reduction tax credits created by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., has proposed that strategy in H.R. 8820, the Improving Access to Long-Term Care Insurance Act bill.

The bill would make a full "above the line" LTCI premium tax deduction available to all individuals paying for this care, including those who do not have enough medical expenses to itemize medical costs when they file their federal income taxes.

The list of new tax credits that would be pruned to pay for the LTCI premium deduction includes the nonbusiness energy property credit, alternative motor vehicle credit, the energy efficient home credit and lean electricity production credit.

What it means: Some members of Congress are still thinking about ways to help people pay for private long-term care insurance.

Details: Burlison's bill has no cosponsors.

It's under the jurisdiction of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Burlison noted in a comment about the bill that as many as 70% of Americans ages 65 and over may eventually need long-term care.

"My bill will encourage individuals to purchase long-term care insurance by providing a tax deduction for the costs of insurance premiums," Burlison said. "The federal government should always be looking for ways to encourage individuals to be self-reliant instead of relying on government programs."

Burlison: Burlison is a software engineer who served in the Missouri House and Missouri Senate for many years before getting elected to the U.S. House in 2022.

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors sent a delegation to meet Burlison during a wave of in-person meetings in late 2023.

One immediate result of the in-person meetings is that Burlison, like several of his Democratic and Republican colleagues, agreed to join the Financial Literacy and Wealth Creation Caucus, according to NAIFA.

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