To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat membership in a health care sharing ministry as a medical expense, and for other purposes.
Latest Action
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Official Summary
Official summary has not been imported yet.
GovScope Watchdog™
AI Government Intelligence™This bill, introduced in the 118th Congress as H.R. 8776, proposes an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow membership fees paid to health care sharing ministries to be treated as qualified medical expenses for tax purposes. This would potentially enable individuals who participate in such ministries to deduct these expenses when calculating their taxable income. The bill was referred to the House Subcommittee on Health but did not advance further and is currently classified as failed or expired. No full text or detailed summary is available, limiting the depth of analysis.
H.R. 8776 sought to amend tax law to recognize health care sharing ministry membership fees as deductible medical expenses but did not progress beyond subcommittee referral and is now expired.
- The bill aims to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to treat health care sharing ministry membership fees as medical expenses.
- Such treatment would affect how taxpayers can deduct these fees on their federal income tax returns.
- The bill was referred to the House Subcommittee on Health on December 17, 2024, and has since failed or expired without further action.
['Individuals who are members of health care sharing ministries and pay membership fees.', 'Health care sharing ministries as organizations potentially gaining increased financial attractiveness.', 'Taxpayers seeking to reduce taxable income through medical expense deductions.']
['Lack of detailed bill text limits clarity on implementation specifics and enforcement mechanisms.', 'Potential tax revenue impacts due to expanded deductions are not addressed.', 'Oversight and verification of qualifying expenses related to health care sharing ministries may pose administrative challenges.']
The bill was introduced in the House during the 118th Congress and referred to the Subcommittee on Health. It addresses taxation policy related to health care financing alternatives, specifically health care sharing ministries, which are non-insurance entities. The bill did not advance beyond subcommittee referral and is now classified as failed or expired, indicating limited legislative momentum or priority.
Hidden impact flags detected: 2
GovScope reviewed 2 policy-risk categories. Hover for a quick definition. Click detected flags for bill-specific details.
['Potential increase in participation in health care sharing ministries due to tax deduction incentives.', 'Possible shifts in health care financing behavior among taxpayers opting for health care sharing ministries over traditional insurance.', 'Administrative burden on tax authorities to define and verify qualifying membership fees.']
Transparency is limited by the absence of full bill text and official summary, restricting comprehensive analysis. The bill's referral to subcommittee with no further action and its expired status highlight the importance of tracking legislative progress for oversight. Potential fiscal impacts and administrative challenges warrant attention in future proposals addressing tax treatment of alternative health care arrangements.
GovScope Intelligence Roadmap
Future bill intelligence will connect sponsors, committee referrals, related votes, campaign finance, disclosures, and stock trades into one legislative intelligence view.