Senate passes delay of medical device excise tax

The U.S. Senate has passed a $1.1 trillion omnibus spending bill and a $650 million tax break package that includes a 2-year suspension of the 2.3% medical device excise tax.

The Senate approved the package by a vote of 65 to 33. Previously approved by a 318-109 vote in the House of Representatives, the measure delays the medical device tax until the 2018 fiscal year. The tax was initially approved as part of the Affordable Care Act.

A measure to block the package in the Senate failed by a vote of 67 to 31.

Now with full Congressional approval, the tax break package will move to President Obama to sign it into law. It is expected he will sign it alongside the omnibus spending bill that will fund the federal government until September 30, 2016. The House of Representatives approved the omnibus spending bill on Friday by a vote of 316 to 113.

The delay is estimated to subtract $3.4 billion from the federal budget between 2016 and 2017, according to a recent estimate from the Non-Partisan Joint Committee on Taxation.

“America’s medical technology companies, including our nearly 2 million employees and the countless patients we serve, appreciate the broad bipartisan effort to suspend the medical device tax,” Vincent A. Forlenza, board chairman of AdvaMed and chairman, CEO and president of BD, stated in an AdvaMed press release. “This critical relief would not be possible without the tireless efforts by a large group of champions in Congress as well as among the patient, provider and research communities. Congress and the administration have demonstrated that they recognize the negative effects of this tax. We urge policymakers to continue their work to eliminate the device tax and address other factors that are threatening the health care innovation ecosystem.”

Reference:

http://www.c-span.org/video/?402296-1/us-senate-morning-business&live