Posted on 01/08/2013 3:58:13 PM PST by lowbridge
Among the five new ObamaCare tax hikes that kicked in Jan. 1, one in particular is attracting opposition from both Republicans and Democrats: the tax on medical devices.
Last month, 18 Democratic senators and senators-elect (including New York’s own Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand) wrote Majority Leader Harry Reid, asking him to delay implementation of this 2.3 percent excise tax on the sales of everything from pacemakers to tongue depressors. The House already voted to repeal the tax, which is projected to extract as much as $29 billion from medical-device firms.
There’s a reason that lawmakers from both parties are looking to scrap the tax: It will cost many Americans their jobs, stifle innovation and lower job-creation in the sector.
Indeed, it puts a stranglehold on one of the few industries in America that is actually thriving and creating jobs. As those 18 senators pointed out in their letter, “The medical-technology industry directly employs over 400,000 people in the United States and is responsible for a total of 2 million high-skilled manufacturing jobs.”
By burdening an industry that has proven an engine of job growth, the excise tax could cost the American economy up to 43,000 jobs.
* Minneapolis-based Medtronic anticipates laying off around 1,000 workers — and a loss of $175 million in 2013.
* Michigan-based Stryker plans to eliminate 1,170 jobs. More than 100 of those cuts will come at the company’s Orchard Park and West Seneca facilities in western New York.
* At Welch Allyn — a medical diagnostics manufacturer headquartered in Skaneateles, NY — 275 jobs will be casualties.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Imposing this tax on medical devices almost guarantees that innovation in the introduction of new medical devices, or making use of existing ones in new procedures, is diminished and made LESS available. And that is just one more example of how individuals are faced with choices that leave them MORE vulnerable to the actions of a “death panel”.
Sort of a “death panel” on automatic pilot.
The whole billneeds to be scrapped.
And let me ask why they are only asking to delay this tax? They all know it is wrong why delay it ABOLISH the damned thing, along with about 2/3rds of the Obamacare health care bill.
Chucky knows Tony is mentally ill ~ he should speak up about it. Next thing you know Tony's going to go kill a lot more kids unless he's stopped.
I did. You did. The whole Tea Party did.
Why didn't they?
They're either stupider than we could imagine or just as evil and manipulative as we thought.
While Obamacare has advocated the “take the blue pill” stance, there are new DEA regulations prohibiting pharmacies from having more than x# of certain meds in stock. I am just now discovering that due to these new DEA regs, we may not even be able to _get_ the blue pill.
I think they want people to look forward to the “death panels.”
I vote for stupider than we can imagine.
But, but they all read the bill before they voted on it
The inventor is a breast cancer survivor who just had her surgery and was told she could not shower for three weeks. This was because of the surgical drains. She couldn't stand to wait the three weeks and fashioned a water shield out of a trash bag. Well, God Bless her entrepreneurial spirit because she realized a better solution was possible.
Maybe they should hold hearings and debates--and even read the freaking bill on the next occassion.
It's like in a Black Adder vignette where Black Adder tricks Lord Melchett into signing his own death warrant.
More than 100 of those cuts will come at the company’s Orchard Park and West Seneca facilities in western New York.
* At Welch Allyn — a medical diagnostics manufacturer headquartered in Skaneateles, NY — 275 jobs will be casualties.
Buffalo and Skaneateles; two NY bastions of liberalism.
All those obama/2012 bumper stickers on the cars at the unemployment office parking lot. I love it
So if I understand this tax, that democrats dislike, stifles jobs, but other taxes that democrat like create revenue that creates jobs.
Only a democrat is disingenuous enough to believe that.
Perhaps even the monumentally stupid elected politicians are finally dimly seeing reality...
Medical-device firms don't pay arbitrary increased taxes. Patients, fighting for their lives do.
Way to go, slimeballs!
Are you enjoying your raises?
Well they must have felt they needed the tax to pay for obamacare. its a package deal. Rather than scrapping the tax how about just scrapping obamacare all together.
I don't know. When it comes to Schumer, I'm inclined to think evil and manipulative. But, then, stupid works, too.
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