Make Billionaires Pay Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4490 To impose an emergency tax on the increase in wealth of billionaires during the COVID–19 pandemic in order to pay for all of the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses of the uninsured and under-insured, including pre- scription drugs, for one year. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES AUGUST 6, 2020 Mr. SANDERS (for himself, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance A BILL To impose an emergency tax on the increase in wealth of billionaires during the COVID–19 pandemic in order to pay for all of the out-of-pocket healthcare expenses of the uninsured and under-insured, including prescription drugs, for one year. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Make Billionaires Pay 4 Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4490 IS TITLE I—PANDEMIC WEALTH 1 TAX 2 SEC. 101. IMPOSITION OF PANDEMIC WEALTH TAX. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Internal Revenue Code of 4 1986 is amended by inserting after subtitle B the fol- 5 lowing new subtitle: 6 ‘‘Subtitle B–1—Pandemic Wealth 7 Tax 8 ‘‘CHAPTER 18—DETERMINATION OF WEALTH TAX ‘‘CHAPTER 18—DETERMINATION OF 9 WEALTH TAX 10 ‘‘Sec. 2901. Imposition of tax. ‘‘Sec. 2902. Net value of assets. ‘‘Sec. 2903. Special rules. ‘‘SECTION 2901. IMPOSITION OF TAX. 11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any applicable in- 12 dividual, there is hereby imposed a tax of 60 percent of 13 the excess (if any) of— 14 ‘‘(1) the net value of assets of the applicable in- 15 dividual on December 31, 2020, over 16 ‘‘(2) the greater of— 17 ‘‘(A) the net value of assets of the applica- 18 ble individual on March 18, 2020, or 19 ‘‘(B) $1,000,000,000. 20 ‘‘(b) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—For purposes of this 21 chapter, the term ‘applicable individual’ means any indi- 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4490 IS vidual whose assets have a net value on December 31, 1 2020, of more than $1,000,000,000. 2 ‘‘SEC. 2902. NET VALUE OF ASSETS. 3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The net value of assets held by 4 an applicable individual as of any day shall be the excess 5 of— 6 ‘‘(1) the value of all property of the applicable 7 individual, real or personal, tangible or intangible, 8 wherever situated, on such day, over 9 ‘‘(2) the amount of any debt owed by the appli- 10 cable individual on such day. 11 ‘‘(b) INCLUSION OF CERTAIN GIFTS.—For purposes 12 of this subtitle, any property transferred by an applicable 13 individual during the period described in section 2901(a) 14 to an individual who is a member of the family of the ap- 15 plicable individual (as determined under section 267(c)(4)) 16 and has not attained the age of 18 shall be treated as 17 property held by the taxpayer for any date before such 18 individual attains the age of 18. 19 ‘‘(c) ESTABLISHMENT OF VALUATION RULES.— 20 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—The Sec- 21 retary shall establish rules and methods for deter- 22 mining the value of any asset for purposes of this 23 subtitle. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4490 IS ‘‘(2) GENERAL RULES.—Except as otherwise 1 provided in this paragraph, the rules and methods 2 established under paragraph (1) may be similar to 3 the rules of part III of subchapter A of chapter 11 4 (other than the rules of sections 2031(c), 2032A, 5 2035, and 2044). 6 ‘‘SEC. 2903. SPECIAL RULES. 7 ‘‘(a) MARRIED INDIVIDUALS.—The Secretary shall 8 by regulations establish rules for the application of this 9 subtitle to married individuals. 10 ‘‘(b) DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.—In the case of any 11 individual who dies during the period described in section 12 2901(a), section 2901(a) shall be applied by substituting 13 the date of the individual’s death for ‘December 31, 2020’. 14 ‘‘(c) ANTI-ABUSE RULES.—The Secretary shall pre- 15 scribe such rules as necessary to prevent the avoidance 16 of the purposes of this section, including through the use 17 of trusts.’’. 18 (b) NO DEDUCTION FROM INCOME TAXES.—Section 19 275 is amended by inserting after paragraph (6) the fol- 20 lowing new paragraph: 21 ‘‘(7) Taxes imposed by chapter 18.’’. 22 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of subtitles 23 is amended by inserting after the item relating to subtitle 24 B the following new item: 25 ‘‘Subtitle B–1—Pandemic Wealth Tax’’. VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4490 IS TITLE II—REIMBURSEMENTS 1 FOR CERTAIN COSTS OF 2 HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND 3 SERVICES INCLUDING PRE- 4 SCRIPTION DRUGS FUR- 5 NISHED DURING PUBLIC 6 HEALTH EMERGENCY 7 SEC. 201. REIMBURSEMENTS FOR CERTAIN COSTS OF 8 HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND SERVICES INCLUD- 9 ING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS FURNISHED DUR- 10 ING PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY. 11 (a) IN GENERAL.—During the 1-year period that be- 12 gins on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 13 shall make payments to qualified providers with respect 14 to applicable health care items and services as defined in 15 subsection (b) that are furnished to an applicable indi- 16 vidual in an amount equal to— 17 (1) in the case of any portion of such period in 18 which an applicable individual is enrolled in a public 19 or private health insurance plan, the amount of any 20 cost-sharing, including any deductibles, copayments, 21 coinsurance or similar charges, that would otherwise 22 be applicable under such plan, including with respect 23 to prescription drug coverage under the plan; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4490 IS (2) in the case of any portion of such period in 1 which an applicable individual is uninsured, the 2 amount that would be paid to the qualified provider 3 for the same or equivalent items or services, includ- 4 ing with respect to any inpatient or physician-admin- 5 istered drugs (and excluding outpatient prescription 6 drugs or biologicals with respect to which coverage 7 is provided under subsection (e)), under the Medi- 8 care program under title XVIII of the Social Secu- 9 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.). 10 (b) APPLICABLE HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND SERV- 11 ICES; APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL DEFINED.—In this sec- 12 tion: 13 (1) APPLICABLE HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND 14 SERVICES.—The term ‘‘applicable health care items 15 and services’’ means, with respect to an applicable 16 individual, any health care items and services that 17 are medically necessary or appropriate for the main- 18 tenance of health or for the diagnosis, treatment, or 19 rehabilitation of a health condition of the applicable 20 individual, including— 21 (A) any testing services and treatments for 22 COVID–19 or related complications, including 23 vaccines, diagnostic tests, drugs and biologicals, 24 and therapies; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4490 IS (B) in the case of an applicable individual 1 who is enrolled in a public or private health in- 2 surance plan, any health care items and serv- 3 ices covered by such plan as of March 1, 2020, 4 or in the case of an applicable individual who 5 enrolls in such plan after the date, any health 6 care items and services covered by such plan as 7 of the date of such enrollment. 8 (2) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘ap- 9 plicable individual’’ means an individual who is a 10 resident of the United States. 11 (c) REQUIREMENTS.— 12 (1) NO EFFECT ON APPLICABLE COST-SHARING 13 REQUIREMENTS.—Nothing in this section shall af- 14 fect the application of any requirements applicable 15 under Federal or State law with respect to coverage 16 of health care items and services without any cost 17 sharing. 18 (2) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.— 19 (A) IN GENERAL.—During the period de- 20 scribed in subsection (a), a public or private 21 health plan shall not increase cost sharing, de- 22 crease benefits, or otherwise make coverage less 23 generous than the benefits offered on the date 24 of enactment of this Act. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4490 IS (B) NEW ITEMS AND SERVICES.—During 1 such period, a public or private health plan 2 shall provide coverage of new items and serv- 3 ices, including those related to COVID–19, as 4 appropriate, at a minimum, at a level consistent 5 with the prior coverage practices and 6 formularies of the plan. 7 (3) LIMITATION ON OUT-OF-POCKET EX- 8 PENSES.—During such period, in order to be eligible 9 to receive payments under this section, a qualified 10 provider shall agree not to impose on an applicable 11 individual any charge for applicable health care 12 items and services furnished to the applicable indi- 13 vidual. 14 (4) PERMISSIBLE BILLING OF PLANS; LIMITA- 15 TION ON BALANCE BILLING.—During such period, in 16 order to be eligible to receive payments under this 17 section, a qualified provider shall agree, with respect 18 to applicable health care items and services fur- 19 nished to an applicable individual when such indi- 20 vidual is enrolled in a public or private health insur- 21 ance plan— 22 (A) not to impose any charge on the plan 23 for such items and services beyond the amount 24 otherwise payable by the plan; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4490 IS (B) not to bill the applicable individual for 1 any amounts in excess of the amount described 2 in subparagraph (A). 3 (5) MEDICAL DEBT COLLECTION.—A qualified 4 provider shall agree— 5 (A) to immediately halt all medical debt 6 collection, including collection activities carried 7 out by third parties, during such period and 8 shall not collect medical debt or have third par- 9 ties collect medical debt for applicable health 10 care items and services furnished during such 11 period; and 12 (B) to refrain from pursuing medical debt 13 collection, including collection activities carried 14 out by third parties, after such period with re- 15 spect to items and services related to the diag- 16 nosis or treatment of COVID–19 (regardless of 17 whether such services were furnished before, 18 during, or after such period) and shall not col- 19 lect medical debt or have third parties collect 20 medical debt for such items or services after 21 such period. 22 (6) SUBMISSION OF BILLS AND DOCUMENTA- 23 TION.—A qualified provider shall agree to submit 24 bills and any required supporting documentation re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4490 IS lating to the provision of applicable health care 1 items and services within 30 days after the date of 2 providing such services, in such manner as the Sec- 3 retary determines appropriate. 4 (d) WAIVER OF LATE ENROLLMENT PENALTIES 5 UNDER MEDICARE.—During the period described in sub- 6 section (a), no increase in the monthly premium of an indi- 7 vidual pursuant to section 1818(c), 1839(b), or 1860D– 8 13 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i–2(c), 9 1395r(b), 1395w–113) shall be effected in the case of any 10 individual who enrolls for benefits under title XVIII of 11 such Act with respect to any period prior to the date of 12 such enrollment. 13 (e) COVERAGE WITH RESPECT TO OUTPATIENT PRE- 14 SCRIPTION DRUGS.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—During the period described 16 in subsection (a), with respect to outpatient pre- 17 scription drugs or biologicals described in subsection 18 (b)(1)(A) that are dispensed to uninsured individ- 19 uals, the Secretary shall establish procedures under 20 which— 21 (A) such drugs or biologicals are dispensed 22 at no cost to such individuals; 23 (B) pharmacies that dispense such drugs 24 or biologicals— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4490 IS (i) are reimbursed by the Secretary 1 for such drugs or biologicals dispensed to 2 such individuals at an amount equal to the 3 price paid by the Secretary of Veterans Af- 4 fairs to procure the drug or biological 5 under the laws administered by the Sec- 6 retary of Veterans Affairs; and 7 (ii) agree not to charge such individ- 8 uals for any difference between the amount 9 reimbursed under clause (i) and the cost to 10 the pharmacy for the drug; and 11 (C) manufacturers of such drugs or 12 biologicals reimburse pharmacies for any dif- 13 ference described in subparagraph (B)(ii) with 14 respect to drugs or biologicals of the manufac- 15 turer that are dispensed to such individuals. 16 (2) CONDITION OF COVERAGE UNDER MEDI- 17 CARE.—During the period described in subsection 18 (a), no coverage may be provided under part B or 19 D of title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 20 U.S.C. 1395j et seq., 1395w–101 et seq.) with re- 21 spect to a drug or biological of a manufacturer if the 22 manufacturer does not enter into an agreement with 23 the Secretary to carry out the requirements applica- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:24 Sep 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4490.IS S4490 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4490 IS ble with respect to such manufacturers under this 1 subsection. 2 (3) REQUIREMENT FOR PARTICIPATING PHAR- 3 MACIES.—During the period described in subsection 4 (a), a prescription drug plan under part D of title 5 XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w– 6 101 et seq.) may not contract with a pharmacy if 7 the pharmacy does not enter into an agreement with 8 the Secretary to carry out the requirements applica- 9 ble with respect to pharmacies under this subsection. 10 (f) OTHER DEFINITIONS.— 11 (1) PUBLIC OR PRIVATE HEALTH INSURANCE 12 PLAN.— 13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘public or 14 private health insurance plan’’ means any of 15 the following: 16 (i) A group health plan, or group 17 health insurance coverage, as such terms 18 are defined in section 2791 of the Public 19 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 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