More workers approve taxing health-care benefits

Until recently, most Americans were opposed to a tax on health-care benefits. Now, however, public sentiment may be shifting.

About 56 percent of U.S. workers are willing to pay tax on some portion of their health-care benefits, according to a survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). An additional 41 percent said they were not willing to pay a tax on any part of those benefits, and 1 percent offered no opinion.

When the same question was asked in 1989, 88 percent were opposed to taxing health-care benefits.

"What we see here is that, as the health-care crisis has worsened in this country, more Americans have become reasonably disposed to some sort of tax on health benefits," said Dallas Salisbury, president of EBRI.