Biden Budget Will Propose Tax Increase to Boost Medicare

WASHINGTON — President Biden, as part of his budget set for release on Thursday, will propose raising a tax on Americans earning more than $400,000 as part of a series of efforts to extend the solvency of Medicare by a quarter-century.

The president will also propose expanding that tax, which helps fund health care programs, to cover a wider swath of income, including some earnings by business owners that currently are not subject to it, White House officials said in a fact sheet released on Tuesday morning. Mr. Biden will also seek to broaden a measure, passed last year entirely with Democratic votes, that allows Medicare to negotiate the price of certain prescription drugs with pharmaceutical companies, which is projected to save the government money.

Mr. Biden’s plans are unlikely to become law. They are almost certain to be rejected by the Republicans who won control of the House last fall, and who roundly oppose tax increases.

But in focusing on Medicare in the budget and ahead of its release, Mr. Biden is seeking to sharpen a contrast with Republicans and cast himself as a protector of cherished retirement programs — both for his likely re-election campaign and for a looming congressional battle over raising the nation’s borrowing limit that centers on taxes, spending and debt.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/07/business/biden-budget-medicare-tax-increase.html