In the Wall Street Journal, former Indiana governor and U.S. Senator Evan Bayh (D) writes:

Medical devices have contributed to remarkable advances in numerous areas: artificial hips and knees, and devices used in the treatment of cancer, and for angioplasty, vascular surgery and in-vitro fertilization, to name a few. Many of these devices have not only improved the quality of life for patients, but also produced health-care cost savings—for instance, each time an angioplastic balloon made open-heart surgery unnecessary.

All of this is now threatened by the only law that is guaranteed to pass in Washington: the law of unintended consequences. …

For a typical company, [the] 2.3% tax on revenues equals a 15% tax on profits. W Many marginally profitable businesses will then hemorrhage red ink, since they’ll have to pay the excise tax whether they are making money or not. …

As a result of the looming device tax, production is moving overseas, good jobs are going to Europe and Asia, and cutting-edge medical devices will now be produced elsewhere for import into the U.S. …

If Congress acts soon, however, most of the harm can be forestalled. There is hope. The House—233 Republicans, joined by 37 Democrats—voted in June to repeal the tax. In the Senate, 33 Republicans are on record in support of doing the same. While no Democrat has stepped up to co-sponsor the legislation, several speak favorably in private. Even Elizabeth Warren, the Democratic Senate candidate from Massachusetts and a staunch progressive, has now come out in favor of repeal.

Read more: Evan Bayh: ObamaCares Tax Raid on Medical Devices – WSJ.com.

(via NCPA)