Make Billionaires Pay Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 8020 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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AUGUST 11, 2020 Ms. OMAR (for herself, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. HASTINGS, and Ms. JAYAPAL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and Commerce, Oversight and Reform, Veterans’ Affairs, Armed Serv- ices, and Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 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 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 8020 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Make Billionaires Pay 2 Act’’. 3 TITLE I—PANDEMIC WEALTH 4 TAX 5 SEC. 101. IMPOSITION OF PANDEMIC WEALTH TAX. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Internal Revenue Code of 7 1986 is amended by inserting after subtitle B the fol- 8 lowing new subtitle: 9 ‘‘Subtitle B–1—Pandemic Wealth 10 Tax 11 ‘‘CHAPTER 18—DETERMINATION OF WEALTH TAX ‘‘CHAPTER 18—DETERMINATION OF 12 WEALTH TAX 13 ‘‘Sec. 2901. Imposition of tax. ‘‘Sec. 2902. Net value of assets. ‘‘Sec. 2903. Special rules. ‘‘SEC. 2901. IMPOSITION OF TAX. 14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any applicable in- 15 dividual, there is hereby imposed a tax of 60 percent of 16 the excess (if any) of— 17 ‘‘(1) the net value of assets of the applicable in- 18 dividual on December 31, 2020, over 19 ‘‘(2) the greater of— 20 ‘‘(A) the net value of assets of the applica- 21 ble individual on March 18, 2020, or 22 ‘‘(B) $1,000,000,000. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 8020 IH ‘‘(b) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—For purposes of this 1 chapter, the term ‘applicable individual’ means any indi- 2 vidual whose assets have a net value on December 31, 3 2020, of more than $1,000,000,000. 4 ‘‘SEC. 2902. NET VALUE OF ASSETS. 5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The net value of assets held by 6 an applicable individual as of any day shall be the excess 7 of— 8 ‘‘(1) the value of all property of the applicable 9 individual, real or personal, tangible or intangible, 10 wherever situated, on such day, over 11 ‘‘(2) the amount of any debt owed by the appli- 12 cable individual on such day. 13 ‘‘(b) INCLUSION OF CERTAIN GIFTS.—For purposes 14 of this subtitle, any property transferred by an applicable 15 individual during the period described in section 2901(a) 16 to an individual who is a member of the family of the ap- 17 plicable individual (as determined under section 267(c)(4)) 18 and has not attained the age of 18 shall be treated as 19 property held by the taxpayer for any date before such 20 individual attains the age of 18. 21 ‘‘(c) ESTABLISHMENT OF VALUATION RULES.— 22 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY.—The Sec- 23 retary shall establish rules and methods for deter- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 8020 IH mining the value of any asset for purposes of this 1 subtitle. 2 ‘‘(2) GENERAL RULES.—Except as otherwise 3 provided in this paragraph, the rules and methods 4 established under paragraph (1) may be similar to 5 the rules of part III of subchapter A of chapter 11 6 (other than the rules of sections 2031(c), 2032A, 7 2035, and 2044). 8 ‘‘SEC. 2903. SPECIAL RULES. 9 ‘‘(a) MARRIED INDIVIDUALS.—The Secretary shall 10 by regulations establish rules for the application of this 11 subtitle to married individuals. 12 ‘‘(b) DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.—In the case of any 13 individual who dies during the period described in section 14 2901(a), section 2901(a) shall be applied by substituting 15 the date of the individual’s death for ‘December 31, 2020’. 16 ‘‘(c) ANTI-ABUSE RULES.—The Secretary shall pre- 17 scribe such rules as necessary to prevent the avoidance 18 of the purposes of this section, including through the use 19 of trusts.’’. 20 (b) NO DEDUCTION FROM INCOME TAXES.—Section 21 275 is amended by inserting after paragraph (6) the fol- 22 lowing new paragraph: 23 ‘‘(7) Taxes imposed by chapter 18.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 8020 IH (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of subtitles 1 is amended by inserting after the item relating to subtitle 2 B the following new item: 3 ‘‘Subtitle B–1—Pandemic Wealth Tax’’. TITLE II—REIMBURSEMENTS 4 FOR CERTAIN COSTS OF 5 HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND 6 SERVICES INCLUDING PRE- 7 SCRIPTION DRUGS FUR- 8 NISHED DURING PUBLIC 9 HEALTH EMERGENCY 10 SEC. 201. REIMBURSEMENTS FOR CERTAIN COSTS OF 11 HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND SERVICES INCLUD- 12 ING PRESCRIPTION DRUGS FURNISHED DUR- 13 ING PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY. 14 (a) IN GENERAL.—During the 1-year period that be- 15 gins on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 16 shall make payments to qualified providers with respect 17 to applicable health care items and services as defined in 18 subsection (b) that are furnished to an applicable indi- 19 vidual in an amount equal to— 20 (1) in the case of any portion of such period in 21 which an applicable individual is enrolled in a public 22 or private health insurance plan, the amount of any 23 cost sharing, including any deductibles, copayments, 24 coinsurance or similar charges, that would otherwise 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 8020 IH be applicable under such plan, including with respect 1 to prescription drug coverage under the plan; and 2 (2) in the case of any portion of such period in 3 which an applicable individual is uninsured, the 4 amount that would be paid to the qualified provider 5 for the same or equivalent items or services, includ- 6 ing with respect to any inpatient or physician-admin- 7 istered drugs (and excluding outpatient prescription 8 drugs or biologicals with respect to which coverage 9 is provided under subsection (e)), under the Medi- 10 care program under title XVIII of the Social Secu- 11 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.). 12 (b) APPLICABLE HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND SERV- 13 ICES; APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL DEFINED.—In this sec- 14 tion: 15 (1) APPLICABLE HEALTH CARE ITEMS AND 16 SERVICES.—The term ‘‘applicable health care items 17 and services’’ means, with respect to an applicable 18 individual, any health care items and services that 19 are medically necessary or appropriate for the main- 20 tenance of health or for the diagnosis, treatment, or 21 rehabilitation of a health condition of the applicable 22 individual, including— 23 (A) any testing services and treatments for 24 COVID–19 or related complications, including 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 8020 IH vaccines, diagnostic tests, drugs and biologicals, 1 and therapies; and 2 (B) in the case of an applicable individual 3 who is enrolled in a public or private health in- 4 surance plan, any health care items and serv- 5 ices covered by such plan as of March 1, 2020, 6 or in the case of an applicable individual who 7 enrolls in such plan after the date, any health 8 care items and services covered by such plan as 9 of the date of such enrollment. 10 (2) APPLICABLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘ap- 11 plicable individual’’ means an individual who is a 12 resident of the United States. 13 (c) REQUIREMENTS.— 14 (1) NO EFFECT ON APPLICABLE COST-SHARING 15 REQUIREMENTS.—Nothing in this section shall af- 16 fect the application of any requirements applicable 17 under Federal or State law with respect to coverage 18 of health care items and services without any cost 19 sharing. 20 (2) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.— 21 (A) IN GENERAL.—During the period de- 22 scribed in subsection (a), a public or private 23 health plan shall not increase cost sharing, de- 24 crease benefits, or otherwise make coverage less 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 8020 IH generous than the benefits offered on the date 1 of enactment of this Act. 2 (B) NEW ITEMS AND SERVICES.—During 3 such period, a public or private health plan 4 shall provide coverage of new items and serv- 5 ices, including those related to COVID–19, as 6 appropriate, at a minimum, at a level consistent 7 with the prior coverage practices and 8 formularies of the plan. 9 (3) LIMITATION ON OUT-OF-POCKET EX- 10 PENSES.—During such period, in order to be eligible 11 to receive payments under this section, a qualified 12 provider shall agree not to impose on an applicable 13 individual any charge for applicable health care 14 items and services furnished to the applicable indi- 15 vidual. 16 (4) PERMISSIBLE BILLING OF PLANS; LIMITA- 17 TION ON BALANCE BILLING.—During such period, in 18 order to be eligible to receive payments under this 19 section, a qualified provider shall agree, with respect 20 to applicable health care items and services fur- 21 nished to an applicable individual when such indi- 22 vidual is enrolled in a public or private health insur- 23 ance plan— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 8020 IH (A) not to impose any charge on the plan 1 for such items and services beyond the amount 2 otherwise payable by the plan; and 3 (B) not to bill the applicable individual for 4 any amounts in excess of the amount described 5 in subparagraph (A). 6 (5) MEDICAL DEBT COLLECTION.—A qualified 7 provider shall agree— 8 (A) to immediately halt all medical debt 9 collection, including collection activities carried 10 out by third parties, during such period and 11 shall not collect medical debt or have third par- 12 ties collect medical debt for applicable health 13 care items and services furnished during such 14 period; and 15 (B) to refrain from pursuing medical debt 16 collection, including collection activities carried 17 out by third parties, after such period with re- 18 spect to items and services related to the diag- 19 nosis or treatment of COVID–19 (regardless of 20 whether such services were furnished before, 21 during, or after such period) and shall not col- 22 lect medical debt or have third parties collect 23 medical debt for such items or services after 24 such period. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 8020 IH (6) SUBMISSION OF BILLS AND DOCUMENTA- 1 TION.—A qualified provider shall agree to submit 2 bills and any required supporting documentation re- 3 lating to the provision of applicable health care 4 items and services within 30 days after the date of 5 providing such services, in such manner as the Sec- 6 retary determines appropriate. 7 (d) WAIVER OF LATE ENROLLMENT PENALTIES 8 UNDER MEDICARE.—During the period described in sub- 9 section (a), no increase in the monthly premium of an indi- 10 vidual pursuant to section 1818(c), 1839(b), or 1860D– 11 13 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395i–2(c), 12 1395r(b), 1395w–113) shall be effected in the case of any 13 individual who enrolls for benefits under title XVIII of 14 such Act with respect to any period prior to the date of 15 such enrollment. 16 (e) COVERAGE WITH RESPECT TO OUTPATIENT PRE- 17 SCRIPTION DRUGS.— 18 (1) IN GENERAL.—During the period described 19 in subsection (a), with respect to outpatient pre- 20 scription drugs or biologicals described in subsection 21 (b)(1)(A) that are dispensed to uninsured individ- 22 uals, the Secretary shall establish procedures under 23 which— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 8020 IH (A) such drugs or biologicals are dispensed 1 at no cost to such individuals; 2 (B) pharmacies that dispense such drugs 3 or biologicals— 4 (i) are reimbursed by the Secretary 5 for such drugs or biologicals dispensed to 6 such individuals at an amount equal to the 7 price paid by the Secretary of Veterans Af- 8 fairs to procure the drug or biological 9 under the laws administered by the Sec- 10 retary of Veterans Affairs; and 11 (ii) agree not to charge such individ- 12 uals for any difference between the amount 13 reimbursed under clause (i) and the cost to 14 the pharmacy for the drug; and 15 (C) manufacturers of such drugs or 16 biologicals reimburse pharmacies for any dif- 17 ference described in subparagraph (B)(ii) with 18 respect to drugs or biologicals of the manufac- 19 turer that are dispensed to such individuals. 20 (2) CONDITION OF COVERAGE UNDER MEDI- 21 CARE.—During the period described in subsection 22 (a), no coverage may be provided under part B or 23 D of title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 24 U.S.C. 1395j et seq., 1395w–101 et seq.) with re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:29 Sep 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8020.IH H8020 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 8020 IH spect to a drug or biological of a manufacturer if the 1 manufacturer does not enter into an agreement with 2 the Secretary to carry out the requirements applica- 3 ble with respect to such manufacturers under this 4 subsection. 5 (3) REQUIREMENT FOR PARTICIPATING PHAR- 6 MACIES.—During the period described in subsection 7 (a), a prescription drug plan under part D of title 8 XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w– 9 101 et seq.) may not contract with a pharmacy if 10 the pharmacy does not enter into an agreement with 11 the Secretary to carry out the requirements applica- 12 ble with respec [Text truncated for display. 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