WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives' healthcare bill released on Thursday raises most revenue by taxing individuals making $500,000 or more, but also tightens rules for corporate accounting and takes aim at foreign companies working in tax havens. The $894 billion bill, a product of months of negotiations between three committees, must now be reconciled with a Senate version, where many of the provisions could change. Americans earning more than $500,000, or couples taking in more than $1 million annually, would face a 5.4 percent tax, to raise $460.5 billion. The Senate version contains no such tax. The provision would impact 0.3 percent of all U.S. households, according to a Joint House-Senate tax panel. Another provision would collect $26.1 billion over 10 years by putting off a liberalized way for multinational companies to allocate interest expense, until 2020. The bill also limits tax benefits for foreign multinational companies incorporated in tax havens which may be using offshore structures to evade U.S. taxes. Large U.S. employers not providing health insurance would face a tax equal to 8 percent of wages. No estimate was provided for this provision. Medical device makers would be slapped with a 2.5 percent tax, imposed on the sale of any medical device except those sold to the general public, raising $20 billion. Devices sold for further use in manufacturing are also exempted. The bill is posted at: http://docs.house.gov/rules/health/111_ahcaa.pdf (Reporting by Julie Vorman and Kim Dixon; Editing by James Dalgleish) |