Senate Republicans: We Have The Votes To Repeal Medical Device Tax
U.S. Senate Republicans told The Wall Street Journal that a Senate vote to repeal the medical device tax is near at hand, and they believe they have enough votes on both sides of the aisle to curtail a presidential veto. According to WSJ sources, Republicans likely will hold onto the repeal and use it as a bargaining chip for later spending bill negotiations.
Many in the device industry have railed against the 2.3 percent tax since it was conceived as part President Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA), claiming it stifles the industry’s ability to create new jobs and fund innovation.
The Washington Times published a scathing editorial this week, which referred to the ACA as “Obama’s scheme” and called the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the ACA a “little artful abuse of the language.”
The editorial complains that the medical device tax takes a bite out of gross sales, rather than profits, and it risks shutting down companies that are operating in the red. Citing The Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), the piece claims that the tax has killed 14,000 jobs and blocked the creation of nearly 19,000.
Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 160, dubbed “The Protect Medical Innovation Act,” in a 240-to-180 vote that included 46 votes from Democrats. AdvaMed president Stephen Ubl released a statement lauding the decision and calling for an equal show of support in the Senate.
Senator Amy Klobuchar is from Minnesota, home of two of the biggest names in the U.S. device industry —Medtronic and St. Jude Medical — and was one of five Democrats to co-sponsor the Senate bill to repeal the tax.
Klobuchar told the WSJ, “This is tax on manufacturing and I’ve always been in favor of eliminating it.”
Though the $30 billion the tax would collect over the next ten years is a small part of the ACA’s expanded coverage, many are concerned that there is no plan to replace the funds, and some allege the repeal is just an attempt to chip away at the ACA.
While many democrats could support the repeal in theory, the WSJ asserts they will be unlikely to do so unless the ACA’s funds can be replaced from another source. To overcome filibuster, 60 senators will have to come out in favor of bringing the bill to the floor.