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June 12, 2012 at 09:38 AM
Members of the Senate have started the process of considering H.R. 436, the Health Care Cost Reduction Act of 2012 bill.
Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., rose on the floor of the Senate Monday to introduce the bill by asking for its first reading and asking for a second reading.
The Senate gave the bill its second reading today. Someone objected to the bill. Under Senate Rule XIV, the next step is for Senate leaders to decide which committees will consider the bill.
The bill started life as a measure that would repeal an excise tax on medical device sales. The tax would be imposed by a provision in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA).
H.R. 436 now includes a number of provisions related to flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and health savings accounts (FSAs), including one that would eliminate the current requirement that holders of FSAs forfeit any unused account balance at the end of the plan year.
