Medical device tax repeal bill gains some ground
Source: Washington Post
Makers of medical devices are gaining some momentum in a vigorous campaign to persuade Congress to scrap a tax imposed on their industry by the 2010 health-care law.
A bill to void the tax sponsored by Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-Minn.) will be marked up in the House Ways and Means Committee Thursday. Republican House leaders say a floor vote could be scheduled as soon as next week.
Congress already has scotched other segments of the law through bipartisan votes including a provision that would have expanded the range of purchases that businesses must report to the Internal Revenue Service and a glitch that would have allowed up to three million middle-class Americans to enroll in Medicaid.
It is still unclear if the medical device tax will prove the next example. Republicans have seized on the issue as a political weapon, pointing to it as the latest evidence that President Obamas signature health-care initiative is a jobs killer. But the repeal bills 239 co-sponsors include 11 Democrats. Also expressing support are the two Democratic senators from Minnesota, one of at least eight states where the industry is strong.
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