Feeling fat or old? Would you like to get rid of those fine lines around your eyes and perhaps suck the cellulite out of your belly or thighs? Maybe you'd like to add some extra hair on your head or if you're a woman lift up that which is now sagging due to gravity and age. If you're thinking about having a little "work" done anytime soon you may want to act on that desire quickly; unless of course you don't mind paying more.
The Senate's health care reform bill includes a 5% excise tax on cosmetic surgeries that are "not necessary to ameliorate a deformity arising from, or directly related to, a congenital abnormality, a personal injury resulting from an accident or trauma or a disfiguring disease." Democrats included the language because it will generate almost $6 billion over the next decade thus helping to pay for the nearly trillion dollar legislation.
That provision has the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) seeing red. Dr. Michael McGuire, President of ASPS said, "Elective surgery taxes discriminate against women, given that 86 percent of cosmetic surgery patients are female." McGuire also argued that plastic surgeries are no longer considered luxury procedures only for the wealthy. According to a survey conducted by ASPS in 2005, of those considering cosmetic surgery, 60% reported incomes of under $90 thousand.
However, the greater issue, according to many doctors is the gray area that the legislation does not specifically define. For example, how do you address reconstructive surgery? Senator Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a physician, says lawmakers made a grave error. Coburn told MSNBC, "They're going to tax having your breast rebuilt after your breast is taken off because it is elective plastic surgery. We're in trouble as a nation because we've taken our eye off the ball."
Dr. Malcolm Roth, a plastic surgeon with the Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York says the provision shapes up to be a "bureaucratic nightmare." "Who decides whether the procedure is cosmetic or not," asked Dr. Roth. His colleagues at the ASPS agree, stating that state tax auditors would ultimately make the decision if a surgery fits within the bill's language; something they're not qualified to do.
Dr. McGuire understands the need for health care reform but questioned the effectiveness of using the tax to pay for reform. "Medical care should not be used as a tool to fix broken finances," he said.
New Jersey is currently the only state with a cosmetic surgery tax on the books. In 2007 the state's legislature voted to repeal the measure but then-Governor Jon Corzine vetoed the bill.
Comments
It says very clearly in the bill that reconstructive surgery after breast cancer is exempt from the tax.
What page exactly is that on "Read" because I haven't found it.
If the cosmetic surgery is for vanity reasons, I see no problem with a 5% tax. Most people getting unnecessary plastic surgery do have enough money or they would be spending it on more worthwhile items. Some of these procedures cause more problems than the original one. Mental health counseling is covered and they may want to take advantage of that.
Maybe this would curtail some of the stupid breast implants and liposuction. There are a lot more procedures now that can enhance a woman's looks that are not surgical anyway.
Soooo, what's next? A tax on depression counseling? A tax on marriage counseling? A tax on Viagra? A tax on everything you don't deserve? Remember, if you are getting elective surgery, you've already paid taxes on the money you are using to pay for the surgery. How many times should we pay taxes on the same money?
I'll make you a deal; stop using my tax $ for illegal residents and you can tax my botox.
The bill does not address reconstructive surgery after breast cancer. The hardest part about breast cancer is not the breast that was removed, it's the other breast. In probably 80% of cases surgery is needed on the other breast to make it match the reconstructed breast. Now, is that cosmetic? Currently it is covered by insurance. However, the surgical procedure codes that are entered into the billing mechanism are the same codes as cosmetic breast surgery. How on earth will a government computer be able to decide whether the code is reconstructive or cosmetic for that patient? It won't. So, you'll require a tax collector to make that determination. New Jersey tried this, disliked it, and tried to repeal it. In fact, the state senator who introduced the tax is the same senator who introduced the motion to repeal it. The governor's veto was one of the reasons he was not re-elected.
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