The American Dental Association is pushing for the Ways and Means Committee in the House of Representatives to advance tax reform legislation and policies to help alleviate workforce shortages in the dental industry.
Here are the four bills the ADA supports, according to an Oct. 26 news release from the organization:
- Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act: Would allow funds that are in a tax-exempt 529 savings account to be used to pay for expenses to acquire and keep postsecondary credentials.
- Student Loan Interest Deduction Act: Increases the student loan interest deduction from $2,000 to $5,000 and takes away deduction limits.
- Dental Loan Repayment Assistance Act: Would exempt repayment received for those who participate in Dental Faculty Loan Repayment program for income tax.
- Indian Health Service Health Professions Tax Fairness Act: Healthcare professionals, including dentists, who participate in the IHS Loan Repayment Program would be able to exclude interest and principal payments from their federal income taxes.
On average, dental students have more than $300,000 in student loan debt, the release said.