A Senate bill to repeal the medical device tax gained 1 more supporter this month with Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) lending his name to the effort, bringing total sponsors to 38.
Kirk this week signed his support for Senate bill 232, the "Medical Device Access & Innovation Protection Act," which aims to eliminate the 2.3% medtech sales tax that was enacted by the Affordable Care Act.
Illinois is home to some big players in the medical device space, including vocal medtech tax repeal advocates Cook Group and Cook Medical.
Federal government tracking pegs Kirk’s support of S. 232 on Dec. 16, 2013, but this is not the Senator’s 1st strike at the levy. Kirk in March 2012 voted alongside 78 other Senators, including fellow Prairie State Senator Richard Durbin (D), to pass a non-binding budget resolution to repeal the tax.
It’s unclear whether a true repeal bill would make much headway given that Congress would have to find some means to make up for the $30 billion in revenue the medical device tax would generate. Previous pay-for proposals have rubbed Democrats the wrong way, and President Barack Obama has on more than 1 occasion promised to veto a device tax repeal bill should one land on his desk.
Sen. Kirk’s office issued no statements on his sponsorship of the new bill and spokespeople did not immediately return requests for comment.
