House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and three other Republican Congressmen sent a letter (pdf) to the White House yesterday with two proposals on how to keep the interest rate low on subsidized Stafford student loans.
Within one of the proposals was a reduction of the Medicaid provider tax threshold from the current 6 percent to 5.5 percent starting in 2013. The Medicaid provider tax — which is a tax on hospitals and other healthcare providers to receive more federal matching dollars for Medicaid — would also be cut from 5.5 percent to 3.5 percent from fiscal year 2015 to FY 2017. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this House-passed proposal would reduce the national deficit by $4.65 billion from 2012 to 2017.
Revising the Medicaid provider tax threshold alone would not offset the costs of the student loan bill. The CBO estimates a one-year extension of the low student loan interest rates will cost almost $6 billion.
Within one of the proposals was a reduction of the Medicaid provider tax threshold from the current 6 percent to 5.5 percent starting in 2013. The Medicaid provider tax — which is a tax on hospitals and other healthcare providers to receive more federal matching dollars for Medicaid — would also be cut from 5.5 percent to 3.5 percent from fiscal year 2015 to FY 2017. The Congressional Budget Office estimates this House-passed proposal would reduce the national deficit by $4.65 billion from 2012 to 2017.
Revising the Medicaid provider tax threshold alone would not offset the costs of the student loan bill. The CBO estimates a one-year extension of the low student loan interest rates will cost almost $6 billion.
More Articles on the Medicaid Provider Tax:
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