Photo credit: Brudersohn (CC-By-SA 3.0)
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 280 to 140 to pass H.R. 160 the Protect Medical Innovation Act of 2015 that repeal the 2.3% medical device tax that is part of Obamacare. The House has voted over 50 times to repeal all or part of President Barack Obama’s landmark legislation.
The tax was implemented two years ago and it applied to items like x-ray machines, not items used by individual patients. The tax was added to help pay for the Affordable Care Act.
The vote on the bill was bipartisan in the House with 46 Democrats voting with Republicans to repeal the tax. It is uncertain if the Senate can pull together the two-thirds majority vote needed to override President Obama’s threatened veto of the bill however.
“The Medical Device Tax is an unnecessary burden and another example of the president’s health care law having a direct disconnect with what works for hardworking Iowans and Americans. I was proud to join the House of Representatives in passing the repeal of the harmful Medical Device Tax today, and it was an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote. This is an ill-conceived tax on nearly every medical product made in our country, driving up prices for Americans and putting our manufacturers and workers at a disadvantage against foreign competitors. Passing this bill is a commonsense step to control health care costs and grow our economy,” Congressman David Young (R-Iowa) said in a released statement.
With the Iowa delegation Congressmen Rod Blum (R-Iowa) and Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa) joined Young to vote for the bill. Congressman Steve King (R-Iowa) did not vote.