Two senators from states with hefty medical device clusters sponsored an amendment to healthcare reform legislation that would exempt companies with less than $100 million in annual sales from a proposed medical device tax, delaying its implementation until 2013.
The amendment is being sponsored by Sen. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.), along with Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Amy Klobuchar (D.-Minn.), Al Franken (D.-Minn.), Herb Kohl (D.-Wis.), Debbie Stabenow (D.-Mich.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).
Under the proposed amendment, companies reporting less than $100 million in yearly revenues would be exempt from the tax. Companies reporting between $100 million and $150 million would pay an excise tax on 50 percent of their revenues; the rate for companies with more than $150 million in annual sales would be 100 percent. If approved, the amendment would also make the excise tax tax-deductible.
The rollback on the medical device tax to 2013 brings it in line with a similar measure approved last month by the U.S. House bill.
Steven Ubl, CEO of the Advanced Medical Technology Assoc. (AdvaMed) issued a statement in support of the amendment late Monday, saying it would “help protect small companies who are often drivers of both innovation and employment.”
The amendment also calls for an increase in the annual payment amounts, to $3.8 billion per year from 2013 to 2019, and then $2.6 million in annual fees for calendar years after 2019.