Amodei Votes to Repeal ObamaCare Tax on Medical Devices

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Congressman Mark Amodei (NV-2) today voted in favor of H.R. 436, the Health Care Cost Reduction Act of 2012, of which he is a cosponsor.The bill, which passed the House with broad bipartisan support 270 to 146, would repeal the ObamaCare tax on sales of medical devicesthat isset to go into effect on January 1, 2013. If the 2.3 percent tax is not repealed, medical device companies are expected to pass the cost on to consumers, lay off workers, and cut research and development.

"This is a misguided tax on American innovation and American jobs. Worse still, instead of improving health care and decreasing costs, it does the exact opposite," said Amodei. "Because it applies to gross sales, companies at thin margins could be driven out of business, meaning not only lost jobs but also fewer pain-reducing and life-saving inventions, such as stents and defibrillators, which actually reduce health care costs."

Medicare's chief actuary predicts the medical device tax will be passed on to consumers in the form of higher device prices and higher insurance premiums.

"Besides harming job creation and real health care reform, this tax is part of the fuzzy math that pays for the gross expansion of government that is ObamaCare, which hopefully will be overturned in its entirety this summer by the Supreme Court," said Amodei.

H.R. 436 would also repeal ObamaCare's limitations, including fines and penalties, on using health-related savings accounts for over-the-counter medication. This would allow American families to use the money they have saved for the lower-cost medications they need without government interference in their choice of medicine or method of payment. Furthermore, the legislation would allow Americans to keep unused funds from flexible spending accounts.

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