PHIT Passes House For First Time, Makes History

September 20, 2023 Update: Since the bill's inception, the health and fitness industry has strongly pushed for Congress to #PassPHIT. The battle continues to this day. To participate in active campaigns, visit the IHRSA action center.

August 8, 2018 Update

When PHIT passed the House, we rallied for support for PHIT (S.482) in the Senate. IHRSA asked you to reach out to your Senators to support the PHIT Act via an online #PassPHIT campaign that has since closed.

July 25, 2018

Twelve years ago, the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), and the National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity (NCPPA) developed the idea to create a bill that would incentivize more Americans to be physically active.

Today, this idea is one step closer to becoming a reality because this afternoon this bill—The Personal Health Investment Today (PHIT) Act—was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives as part of a larger HSA bill package (H.R. 6199) by a vote of 277 to 142.

The PHIT provision that passed would allow Americans to use tax-free accounts like HSAs and FSAs to pay for qualified fitness expenses, including health club memberships, sports safety equipment, and youth sports fees. Under the current version of the bill, individuals could use up to $500 to cover these expenses and families could use up to $1,000.

“We knew that there would be increased opportunities to advance this legislation in the 115th Congress and we are thrilled to celebrate this significant victory,” said Helen Durkin, IHRSA's executive vice president of public policy. “While our work on PHIT is not finished, we’d like to take today to thank every individual and organization that has supported healthy lifestyles by speaking up in favor of the benefits that PHIT would provide to our citizens and our nation. Your passion for and commitment to helping others lead active, healthy lives has brought us to this historic moment.”

PHIT boasts broad bipartisan support. Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO) and Rep. Ron Kind (D-WI) serve as the original House sponsors and their support has been echoed by many others. Currently, PHIT has 153 total sponsors—136 in the House (71 Democrats and 65 Republicans) and 17 in the Senate (6 Democrats and 11 Republicans). Though the bill has been introduced with strong support in each Congress from the 110th through the current 115th, this is the first time it has passed the entire House.

Today, the House vote for PHIT recognized the need for a healthier, happier, more prosperous America. Now it’s the Senate’s turn to do the same.