William Jacobson has dug into the tome-like Senate Healthcare bill and found a provision that will impose a 5% tax on all cosmetic surgery:
Harry Reid and his Democratic band of friends want to impose a 5% excise tax on all elective cosmetic surgeries (those which are not needed to repair deformaties or injuries caused by an accident or disfiguring disease). It’s all in Section 9017 of Harry Reid’s 2,074 page monstrosity released tonight:
“There is hereby imposed on any cosmetic surgery and medical procedure a tax equal to 5 percent of the amount paid for such procedure (determined without regard to this section), whether paid by insurance or otherwise.”To where does the health care bill direct you for the definition of “cosmetic surgery”? To Section 213(d)(9)(B) of the IRS Code:
“(B) Cosmetic surgery defined.— For purposes of this paragraph, the term “cosmetic surgery” means any procedure which is directed at improving the patient’s appearance and does not meaningfully promote the proper function of the body or prevent or treat illness or disease.”
Jacobson identifies the segment of the population that will bear most of the burden for this tax – chicks:
That’s 5% which falls mostly on women, who make up the bulk of cosmetic surgeries. Add 5% to every breast enlargement, nose job, face lift, tummy tuck, and liposuction.
Doesn’t matter if you are rich, middle class or poor – 5% no matter what. And your doctor has to collect it from you, or else the doctor is on the hook for it.
So much for Obama’s promise not to raise taxes on anyone making under $250,000.
And I’ve only had the bill for a few minutes.
Observation:
A tax on cosmetic surgery is in effect a double tax because taxpayers are already denied a deduction for these expenditures.
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9 responses so far ↓
1 Tom // Nov 19, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Isn’t this tax sexist and discriminatory – since 90% of cosmetic surgery patients are women? And how fair is it for the doctor to be on the hook if the patient doesn’t pay the tax?
2 Peter // Nov 19, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Tom,
Thanks for coming.
I had my tongue firmly implanted in my cheek when I suggested that the cosmetic surgery tax is sexist. I know it irks the liberals when their hypocrisy is exposed.
By the way, states already mandate that retailers collect and remit sales tax from their customers. I suppose the 5% surtax will work just like a sales tax.
3 eve stefani // Nov 19, 2009 at 6:53 pm
This doesn’t surprise me… Now I want to see in the bill is the elimination of paying for Viagra and the like…that would be akin to elective enhancement…
4 Armando Soto, MD, FACS // Nov 19, 2009 at 7:44 pm
First- full disclosure- I’m a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. However, the truth is the truth…
Effective taxes are broadly based and have a low rate…
And this tax IS sexist- as the majority of those affected WILL be women, who represent roughly 90% of those choosing aesthetic procedures.
It is also not effective (ask New Jersey), and unfair- the vast majority of my patients are working women making between $25,000 and $80,000 a year. How do they do it? They save their pennies and sometimes finance the procedure the way we all finance anything else that is important to us (cars, homes, stereo equipment).
So rather than do the right thing- the thing most other progressive nations do to balance the health care books- force healthy young people to “buy in” to the system that will eventually take care of them when they age and become ill, and limit the tremendous profits American Insurance companies are making, we’re going to increase the tax burden on young working women. Really??
5 Peter // Nov 19, 2009 at 10:33 pm
Hi Eve,
Thanks for visiting.
Interesting point about Viagra, but then again doesn’t that also help women?
; )
6 Peter // Nov 19, 2009 at 10:38 pm
Dr. Soto,
Thanks for the comment.
This is just another attempt by the nanny state to control the markets. I don’t like it any more than I like taxes on sodas and bad foods.
Let’s face it, we all consume something that isn’t good for us. For instance, one of the worst things for kids is too much TV and video games because it makes them obese from a lack of exercise. How about we put a 5% surtax on the purchase of a 50 inch Vizio?
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