TRENTON, N.J. – Assemblywoman Serena DiMaso and Assemblyman Gerry Scharfenberger condemned the passage of legislation Thursday that would assess a new tax on health insurance premiums:
“During these extremely difficult financial times, adding new taxes to families is unconscionable,” said DiMaso (R-Monmouth). “The health industry is already losing money from this pandemic and will pass this tax along to individuals and small business owners. There is never a right time to increase taxes, but it certainly is not when we have over a thousand constituents in our office alone who haven’t received unemployment money after three months and countless small-business owners are being forced to close down for good.”
The bill adds a 2.5 percent tax on health insurance premiums paid by employees and consumers that will cost a typical family at least $600 dollars more a year.
“Our residents and businesses deserved help to recover from massive financial strains and job losses imposed by the Covid-19 lockdowns,” said Scharfenberger (R-Monmouth). “Yet, what did they receive from Trenton Democrats yesterday? An absurd health tax increase which only serves to crush an incalculable number of New Jerseyans and particularly our seniors who are going to pay excessively more for the Medicare secondary plans!”
Despite bipartisan opposition in both the state Assembly and Senate Thursday, Democrat lawmakers pushed through the tax increase without a single Republican vote.
“The focus should’ve been to provide aid to get those suffering back onto their feet, but instead they were given just another bill to pay,” said Scharfenberger. “Not a single person should have their financial burdens increased, especially now and especially during these times. This latest action by the majority party is absolutely ridiculous.”
DiMaso also blasted passage legislation Thursday (A3999) which allows a presumption that certain essential employees contracted Covid-19 on the job and shifts the response costs onto New Jersey’s workers’ compensation system.
“The legislation pushed forward yesterday shows how out of touch the Democratic-led legislature has become. This new, ludicrous tax on healthcare wasn’t the only absurdity we heard yesterday either: a flawed workers compensation bill that would decimate our already struggling small business community was also passed.” DiMaso continued.