MASSDEVICE ON CALL — There’s not much talk of silver linings in the Congressional quagmire over the debt ceiling, but medical device industry lobbying group AdvaMed’s president & CEO Steve Ubl sees things a bit differently.
Support has been growing for repeal of the 2.3% excise tax, and the negotiations over the federal budget may be just the outlet that repeal advocates need to progress a bill.
"We will look at every opportunity to repeal the device tax, such as the continuing resolution over the debt ceiling," Ubl said during a press conference at AdvaMed’s 2013 conference in Washington D.C. "We are going to do everything we can in the coming weeks to keep this on the radar screen in Congress."
Ubl added that medical device leaders were holding meetings with members of Congress while in town at the conference and that they would "leave no stone unturned" in pushing for repeal of the device tax, Fierce Medical Devices reported.
Antidepressants may be tied to diabetes, researchers say
Researchers urged physicians to take more care in prescribing antidepressants, warning that patients taking the mood-altering drugs are at higher risk of developing Type II diabetes, although it’s not clear that the medication itself is responsible.
Read more
Canada’s digital health system suffering
Canadian healthcare authorities have struggled to spur compliance with the national electronic health record system, with individual provinces looking for tailored systems to meed their unique needs.
Read more
Can Obamacare really reach everyone?
The healthcare subsidies provided through the Affordable Care Act aim to extend coverage to all Americans, but it’s still priced out of range for some families.
Read more
AEDs behind closed doors help no one
Denmark’s national initiatives to disseminate automated external defibrillators are moot when many of the devices are placed in locations that aren’t accessible "after hours."
Read more
