The Senate votes overwhelmingly in favor of a non-binding amendment that would repeal the medical device tax and establish a reserve fund to help pay for it.
The U.S. Senate voted 79-20 in favor of a bipartisan amendment that would repeal the medical device tax.
The measure, proposed by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), is a non-binding amendment contained in a the Senate’s continuing budget resolution, but the win may be an important step forward for opponents of the device tax.
Repeal efforts have had a hard time gaining traction in the Democrat-led Senate as some members voiced concern about how the government would make up for the $30 billion in revenue the tax is slated to generate over 10 years.
The Klobuchar-Hatch amendment would establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to help offset the cost
of repealing the tax.
REFERENCE: AdvaMed Smart Brief dated 21 MAR 2013