Ayotte Backs Amendment to Repeal Medical Device Tax

Press Release

U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte today helped introduce an amendment to repeal the $30 billion medical device tax - an excise tax on medical devices that took effect last year as part of the health care law and stands to harm New Hampshire's medical device industry. The measure Ayotte is cosponsoring was authored by Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) and filed as the Senate debates tax policy legislation.

Ayotte has visited medical device companies across New Hampshire to hear first-hand from employers about their concerns with the tax, which threatens jobs and stands to increase costs for consumers. She has worked for over two years to roll back the tax, and is a cosponsor of stand-alone bipartisan legislation - the Medical Device Access and Innovation Protection Act (S. 232) - to repeal it.

"New Hampshire's medical device industry develops life-saving products and provides quality, good-paying jobs - it's a bright spot in our state's economy," said Ayotte. "Repealing the device tax will help ensure that these businesses can continue to innovate and grow, and this amendment is part of my continued effort to stand up for our state's medical device manufacturers, the people they employ, and the consumers whose lives they help improve ."

There is strong bipartisan support in the Senate for repealing the medical device tax. Last year, in a non-binding vote during consideration of the budget resolution, the Senate voted 79 to 20 in favor of repealing the tax.

New Hampshire is home to about 50 medical device companies employing approximately 3,500 people. Earlier this year, an industry trade group released a survey of its members finding that the medical device tax has cost the industry 33,000 jobs so far. According to the report, since the tax took effect last year, companies have seen employment reductions of 14,000 people and businesses chose not to hire 19,000 workers because of the tax. In addition, Medicare's former Chief Actuary estimated that the tax will increase national health care costs by $18.2 billion in 2018. A 2011 study estimates that the tax threatens 43,000 jobs nationwide, and could result in $3.8 billion in lost wages.

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