Medical device tax goes back into effect
By HME News Staff
Updated Tue January 2, 2018
WASHINGTON - A 2.3% excise tax on medical device manufacturers went back into effect on Jan. 1 after a two-year hiatus, according to news reports. The tax initially went into effect in 2013 as a way to pay for expanded health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. The $150 billion medical device industry, representing everything from catheters to artificial joints, has fought the tax hard. Congress agreed to suspend the tax for 2016 and 2017, with an eye toward abolishing it before 2018, but several efforts to repeal the ACA have failed. Trade groups estimate that the tax will shave the industry by $20 billion over the next decade. Most, but not all, HME has been excluded from the tax.
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