Hatch, Bipartisan Group of Senators Announce Legislation to End Tax on Medical Device Manufacturers

Bill Eliminates Burdensome Tax that Hurts Innovation, Delivery of Quality Patient Care

WASHINGTON – A bipartisan group of ten Senators, led by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), today introduced the Medical Device Access and Innovation Protection Act, S. 149, a bill to repeal the medical device tax that was implemented as a part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).

Under PPACA, manufacturers of medical devices are required to pay a 2.3 percent excise tax on products ranging from surgical tools to bed pans. The tax, which took effect in January 2013, is hurting innovation, job creation, and the overall delivery of quality patient care. A study by the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed) found that the tax impacted approximately 33,000 American jobs in its first year, either through layoffs or forgone jobs that would have been created.

“Every dollar medical device manufacturers spend on this onerous tax is a dollar taken away from American innovation, job growth, and the ability to provide groundbreaking medical technologies to patients in need,” said Hatch. “Both Republicans and Democrats understand just how bad this tax really is, and we owe it to the American people to ensure the development of life-saving medical devices are not plagued by high-costs that will, ultimately, be passed on to patients. This is a common-sense bill, and I’m hopeful Congress will act swiftly to repeal this misguided tax once and for all.”

Members of the medical device community reiterated their support for repeal in a letter today signed by nearly 1,000 corporations and associations.

Joining Hatch in introducing the Medical Device Access and Innovation Protection Act today were Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.), Richard Burr (R-N.C.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Dan Coats (R-Ind.), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.).

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