While I don’t like a hike in taxes, I agree this should be done.  Tax deductible group plan benefits are part of the problem and contributing to higher premium prices.  Why shop or question the price when a 33% discount on any number is still a perceived good price. Right now, the tax code distorts consumer behavior.  If implemented, it may cause more people to shop for cheaperr individual private insurance which is non tax deductible for employees.  But, when you start to equalize the tax code, consumers start to take over the market and demand lower pricing through competition.      For those who lost their job and are being offered Cobra, it forces their hand to shop around.  Many people utilize an agent to assist in the process at ReplaceCobra.com

Read more below:

Obama Would Cut Health Insurance Tax Exemption For High Earners.

The Hill (9/14, Pecquet) reports in its “Healthwatch” blog, “A little-noticed provision in President Obama’s new jobs bill seeks to tax healthcare benefits for the wealthy, a controversial idea that went nowhere during the healthcare reform debate.” While a Democratic Congress refused “to endorse limiting itemized deductions to 28 percent for individuals making more than $200,000 a year,” the Administration is proposing the measure again, along with “an exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance.”