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Publications
Author: Aaron, Henry J.
Using Taxes to Reform Health Insurance (Book)
Henry J. Aaron , Leonard E. Burman
Few people realize that one of the nation’s largest health programs runs through the tax system. Reformers of all stripes propose to modify current tax rules as part of larger programs to increase coverage and control costs. Is the current system working? Will tax-based reforms achieve their goals? Several of the nation’s foremost experts on taxation and health policy address these questions in Using Taxes to Reform Health Insurance, a joint product of the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center and the American Tax Policy Institute.
Published: 11/17/08
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Taxing Capital Income (Book)
Leonard E. Burman , Henry J. Aaron , C. Eugene Steuerle
The question of whether to tax income from wealth has sparked debate since our country’s inception. Does taxing capital income ensure the progressivity of our system or merely discourage saving? Would switching our tax code to one that taxes only consumption be more efficient or only burden middle- and low-income people? And if we were to radically reform the way America taxes its citizens, how could we ensure that vital revenue would not be lost? Some analysts would even argue that, under our present byzantine tax system, we don’t really tax capital income at all. In this volume, eminent economists analyze the problems associated with taxing capital income and propose policy solutions, which are then challenged by their peers in informed commentary. It may not settle the debate, but policymakers, scholars, and the public will find a wealth of information and ideas to consider.
Published: 06/21/07
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Three Steps to Better Healthcare (Article)
Henry J. Aaron
Healthcare analysts have long deplored the linkage between health insurance and employment. It makes no sense for one's health insurance to end if one leaves a job. Various state reform plans, including that of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, deal with the healthcare system as a whole. But President Bush's proposed fix does not go far enough.
Published: 02/15/07
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The Current State of the US Government's Budget: Testimony before the House Committee on the Budget (Testimony)
Henry J. Aaron
Presidents often begin State of the Union messages with some variation on the phrase "The state of the Union is strong." In the same spirit, I shall begin my testimony with the statement "The state of the federal budget is perilously weak and getting weaker. It is on its way to becoming a threat to national economic and political stability." To this I would add that the Administration's proposed 2005 budget would make that situation worse, not better. [© Brookings Institution]
Published: 02/04/04
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The Prescription Drug Bill: Many Steps Backward (Opinion)
Henry J. Aaron
Moderate Democratic members of Congress may be strongly tempted to vote for the Medicare prescription drug proposal crafted by the conference committee that reconciled the versions passed by the House and Senate in June. For one thing, they have long sought to extend Medicare's coverage to prescription drugs, which are an increasingly important component of modern health care but whose cost can impose heavy burdens on low- and moderate-income beneficiaries. Furthermore, it is quite tempting to grab the $400 billion that a conservative president has put on the table this year for such a benefit, as it may be snatched away as lawmakers focus on mounting deficits. [© Brookings Institution]
Published: 11/21/03
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Saving For College? It Will Cost You (Commentary)
Henry J. Aaron , Melissa A. Cox
[Washington Post] States are authorized to establish special accounts, similar to Roth IRAs (except that deposits as well as withdrawals may be exempt from state income tax) to pay for education expenses of children, grandchildren, and others. States typically contract with fiduciaries to administer these programs. Unfortunately, many of these fiduciaries impose high administrative costs which eat up much of the tax savings. That these charges are unnecessarily high is revealed by the fact that two states—Utah and New York—have negotiated much lower expenses. Many states grant state income tax deductions on deposits. Some states, including Maryland and the District of Columbia, allow depositors to transfer funds, on which state income tax deductions have been granted, to Utah, thereby enabling residents to pay administrative costs from savings from deductibility.
Published: 04/06/03
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The Rocky Road to Tax Reform: in Setting National Priorities: The 2000 Election and Beyond (Research Report)
Henry J. Aaron , William G. Gale , James Sly
[© Brookings Institution] From the Boston Tea Party through recent revelations of Internal Revenue Service abuses, paying taxes has aroused public passions in the United States. Every president in the past four decades has proposed significant tax changes, and successive Congresses have enacted many tax bills, major and minor. Seemingly endless tinkering has not, alas, bred satisfaction. Almost everyone concurs that the tax system could be improved. But agreement on the nature and severity of the problems and how to resolve them remains elusive.
Published: 01/01/99
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Fundamental Tax Reform: Miracle or Mirage (Research Report)
Henry J. Aaron , William G. Gale
[© Brookings Institution] This new book, which continues Brookings' highly acclaimed and influential Setting National Priorities series, will serve as a guide for understanding and evaluating proposals of the next Congress and the new administration. It is also designed to inform the policy debate during the presidential election. Edited by Robert Reischauer, one of the nation's most noted budget experts , the book covers such critical issues as prospects for economic growth, how to reduce domestic discretionary spending, how to restructure Medicare; how much to lower the safety net, how to reshape national security for the post-Cold War world, whether to transform the tax system, and how to prepare for the retirement of the baby boom generation.
This book will be extremely useful for citizens anxious to make sense out of the campaign rhetoric, journalists attempting to explain the issues at play, and students of public policy, public health, political science, and economics.
Published: 01/01/97
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