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(WASHINGTON, DC) – On Wednesday, Eighth District Congressman Larry Bucshon, M.D. took to the House floor to discuss the importance of repealing the Medical Device Tax, a 2.3% excise tax on medical devices put in place by the Affordable Care Act.
Video of the speech can be accessed here -Â https://youtu.be/S70Aa4pVooI, and full text is included below:
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“Mr. Speaker, in Indiana the medical device industry employs over 20,000 Hoosiers in over 300 medical device companies. These are good-paying jobs that pay 56 percent more than the average wage.
“As Indiana’s Governor Mike Pence recently put it in a letter to our delegation, ‘This industry is vital to Indiana’s economy and the health and well-being of people across the nation and world.’
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“Unfortunately, this critical industry is living under the shadow of a job-killing tax put in place to pay for Affordable Care Act.
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“In fact, companies in Indiana have already halted research projects and plans for expansion.
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“The Medical Device Tax is crippling innovation of life-saving products like the ones I used as a surgeon, and it’s putting patients and jobs at risk.Â
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“This is about patients, at the end of the day, and their access to healthcare.
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“We’ve had broad bipartisan support for repeal of the Medical Device Tax in both chambers before. It’s time to put an end to this onerous tax once and for all.â€
BACKGROUND:
H.R. 160, the Protect Medical Innovation Act, repeals the 2.3% excise tax on medical devices put in place to help pay for the Affordable Care Act. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN), has broad bipartisan support with 282 cosponsors. Similar legislation passed the U.S. House of Representatives in the 113th Congress but was not brought up for a vote in the U.S. Senate. However, in March of 2013, the Senate passed a non-binding budget resolution opposing the tax by a bipartisan vote of 79-20 and earlier this year, a bipartisan group of Senators filed a bill to repeal the tax.
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