Native American Health Savings Improvement Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1476) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit individuals eligible for Indian Health Service assistance to qualify for health savings accounts, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1476, currently under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to stand before you today as we consider H.R. 1476, the Native American Health Savings Improvement Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by Mr. Moolenaar of Michigan, that makes commonsense improvements to current rules surrounding health savings accounts and those who get care through the Indian Health Service.

Generally, anyone covered solely by a high-deductible health plan that meets certain requirements is allowed to make tax-free contributions to a health savings account. But for certain individuals who receive care through the Indian Health Service, this isn't the case.

Under IRS guidance, an individual who has received medical services at an Indian Health Service facility at any time during the previous 3 months is ineligible to make contributions to an HSA. This practice could discourage those who rely on care delivered at an Indian Health Service facility from participating in an HSA. This should be fixed so that these enrollees can avail themselves to the benefits of Health Savings Accounts.

High-deductible health plans and health savings accounts are critical components of consumer-driven healthcare. Together, they empower individuals and families to shop around. They unleash the power of choice and competition that are so badly needed in healthcare to lower costs and improve quality today. These are the elements we need to encourage in the system, if we are going to start bending the cost curve in the right direction, and if we want to lower barriers to these types of accounts and encourage individuals who are otherwise eligible not to forgo treatment at an Indian Health Service facility simply because of confusion over when they might be able to resume contributing to their HSA.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bipartisan legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Moolenaar).

Mr. Speaker, about 22 million Americans are covered by high-deductible health plans with an HSA. These are options that are increasingly popular across the spectrum because they lower premiums and they are a vehicle to save for other healthcare expenses.

I think this is a good bill. It has been well articulated this afternoon, particularly by the bill's sponsor and by Mr. Thompson, and I urge its passage.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, the House has passed this bill before. It allows individuals eligible for Indian Health Service, or IHS, to participate in a health savings account if they are enrolled in a high-deductible health plan.

I support this bill. We should be talking about issues in healthcare that strengthen our healthcare system for all Americans while addressing the issues in the Indian Health Service program, and there should be no exception to that today.

Given the important role IHS plays providing primary care to our Native American population, we should be working to ensure that all participants in IHS have access to high-quality care. Reports of underfunding and resulting substandard care need to be addressed, so we make sure that all individuals that this healthcare program serves benefit from the congressional action that we take, not just those who happen to have the money to put in an HSA, to pay for an HSA.

We shouldn't overlook the important role Medicare and Medicaid play in providing healthcare to these populations. Thousands of IHS beneficiaries are also enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid, or some combination of both.

Republicans are looking to dramatically cut and undermine these critical programs. Offering IHS enrollees a savings account won't make up for damage inflicted by the cuts to Medicaid or Medicare.

Instead, we should strengthen both of these programs and coordinate care with IHS to make sure individuals are getting the best care possible.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the sponsors of this bill, and I want to give a particular shout-out to Congressman Raul Ruiz, also Dr. Ruiz when he is not in Congress, for his cosponsorship of this bill and all the hard work that he has put into this effort.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to cast an ``aye'' vote for this measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, first, I want to thank Chairman Brady of the House Committee on Ways and Means for his leadership of the committee, and also Mr. Roskam and Mr. Thompson for their support here on the floor today.

I also want to thank Congressman Raul Ruiz for cosponsoring this legislation and making it bipartisan.

This legislation before us today, H.R. 1476, will improve access to health savings accounts for Native Americans who choose to receive care at Indian Health Service facilities by ending an unnecessary penalty against them.

Mr. Speaker, if you or I were to use a health savings account, we would be able to immediately make a contribution to it the day after you receive care at a doctor's office. There is no prohibition on making those contributions.

However, right now, Native Americans across the country, including my constituents, cannot do the same thing if they receive treatment from a doctor at the Indian Health Service. Instead, they are prohibited from immediately saving the money they earned and must wait for 3 months before they can make another contribution into the personal account they use to provide for their health and that of their family.

This makes no sense. Instead, this commonsense legislation eliminates the problem. If this bill becomes law, Native Americans will no longer have to wait 3 months. They will be able to receive treatment from Indian Health Service doctors near them and save money in their HSAs whenever they want.

This is a bipartisan, patient-centered solution to a government- created problem.

It will benefit the Saginaw Chippewas in my district as well as Tribes throughout Michigan and across the country. It will help those who work hard to save money and take care of their families.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for their support of this legislation.