NC West Virginia News

Congressman Alex X. Mooney has reintroduced the Protecting Life in Health Savings Accounts Act (H.R 8049), aiming to end the preferential tax treatment of abortion. In a statement, Mooney emphasized, "Abortion is not health care and should not be considered a medical expense." The legislation would exclude elective abortions from being paid for out of various types of health savings accounts.

Mooney was joined by seven House Republicans as original cosponsors, including Reps. Matt Rosendale, Jeff Duncan, Mary Miller, Dan Crenshaw, Paul Gosar, Bob Good, and Daniel Webster. Senator Mike Lee introduced a similar bill in the Senate.

In his remarks, Mooney criticized the Biden administration's approach to abortion, stating, "The radical pro-abortion movement is doing anything they can to keep access to abortion as easy and frequent as possible." He added, "Protecting life is one of my top priorities in Congress. Abortion should not be paid for by the taxpayer and should not hold any special privileges when it comes to tax incentives."

The legislation addresses the current classification of elective abortions as an eligible medical expense under federal law, allowing individuals to use tax-advantaged funds in health savings accounts, flexible savings accounts, health reimbursement arrangements, Archer medical savings accounts, and retiree health accounts to cover such procedures. The Protecting Life in Health Savings Accounts Act aligns with Senator Mike Lee's efforts in the Senate on this issue.