PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Oct 17, 2017
Mandate Relief Act of 2017
This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) to allow additional exemptions from the requirement under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) to maintain minimum essential health coverage (commonly referred to as the individual mandate). The bill exempts individuals who: (1) have household incomes below the national median, (2) reside in a state in which the average premium for self-only or family coverage under the second lowest cost silver plan within the state has increased by more than 10% from the prior year, or (3) reside in a county with fewer than two health insurance issuers offering qualified plans on an exchange.
The bill also repeals provisions added to the IRC by PPACA that: (1) restrict payments from health savings accounts (HSAs), Archer medical savings accounts (MSAs), and health flexible spending and reimbursement arrangements for medications to prescription drugs and insulin (thus allowing payments for over-the-counter medications); (2) impose a $2,500 limitation on salary reduction contributions to a health flexible spending arrangement under a cafeteria plan; and (3) impose an additional tax on HSA and Archer MSA distributions not used for qualified medical expenses.
People & committees
Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR] · R–AR
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Aug 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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