ST. PAUL, MN — Rep. Nick Zerwas (R-Elk River) joined fellow Minnesota House Republicans at a press conference Tuesday urging the new DFL House Majority and Governor Walz not to raise health care costs on Minnesotans by restoring the sick tax—a 2 percent tax levied on most patient services in Minnesota, including things like baby deliveries, chemotherapy treatments, routine doctor visits, emergency room visits, and more.
“Despite promises on the campaign trail that they would work to lower health care costs, Democrats and Governor Walz are planning to do just the opposite,” said Rep. Zerwas. “Apparently Democrats’ solution to the problem of soaring health care costs is to tax these services by upwards of $600 million a year. Health care costs are already too high for Minnesota families and with a $1.5 billion state budget surplus, any talk of raising taxes on these life-saving services should end today.”
The tax, which was eliminated as part of bipartisan legislation passed by a Republican-controlled legislature and signed into law by Governor Dayton in 2011, is set to expire starting January 1, 2020. In total, restoring the tax would result in a more than $600 million increase on health care costs for Minnesotans next year alone. Over the past week, Governor Walz called it a "nonstarter" to end the tax, and DFL House HHS Finance Chair Tina Liebling said it was "essential" to restore the tax or replace its revenue.
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