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#PassPHIT ihrsa.org/PHIT <br />How a little-known piece of bipartisan legislation could help <br />hard-working Americans stay healthy: <br />Finally. A way to help hard-working Americans stay healthy and active. It’s PHIT—legislation <br />working its way through Congress that would make physical activity, including youth sports, fitness <br />equipment, and health club memberships more affordable. <br /> The Personal Health Investment Today Act (PHIT) <br />The backdrop <br />Americans carry the weight of their healthcare costs more than ever before. In fact, healthcare <br />costs top the list of financial worries according to a 2016 Gallup survey. <br />A growing number of workers now carry deductibles—83% of single coverage employees—and <br />these deductibles have risen dramatically, up 49% since 2011. <br />Today, more than half of all single coverage workers carry an annual deductible of at least $1,000. <br />The average comes in at $1,478, and exceeds $2,000 at small firms. <br />What’s more, healthcare costs are increasing faster than wages, taking a bigger chunk out of <br />the family budget. In fact, the average American family now spends 10% of its income on health <br />insurance premiums and deductibles alone. <br />Decades of research prove that leading a physically active lifestyle is integral to good health, and <br />good health means lower individual healthcare spending. <br />Needless to say, staying healthy pays <br />The catch is, while staying physically active saves money in the long run, there are costs. And, <br />paradoxically, even though we know that regular exercise helps prevent many common and costly <br />chronic diseases, our current healthcare system and tax code don’t give hard-working Americans a <br />break. <br />At the moment, activity expenses aren’t typically covered by health insurance—and they’re not <br />tax deductible. While some enlightened insurance companies see the value of exercise and offer <br />discounts for gym memberships, payments are not a tax-deductible medical expense. <br />That’s where PHIT comes in. It’s a legislative solution that would give hard-working Americans <br />greater choice in how their healthcare dollars are spent.