Rep. Buerkle to Obama: Repeal the medical device tax | MassDevice.com On Call

Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle (R-N.Y.) asks President Barack Obama to repeal the 2.3% medical device tax that's set to go into effect in January.

MASSDEVICE ON CALL — A congresswoman from upstate New York is asking President Barack Obama to repeal the medical device tax that's now just 3½ months away.

Prompted by local medical device company Welch Allyn's decision to cut 10% of its workforce because of the 2.3% sales tax, Buerkle urged Obama to work with Senate leaders to enact a repeal bill the House approved this year.

Welch Allyn said Sept. 10 that it plans to shed 275 of its 2,750 positions worldwide [1] to compensate for the impending levy. The tax, part of the Patient Protection & Affordable Care Act, is slated to go into effect in January 2013. It applies to all U.S. sales of medical devices.