The Medical Device Business Journal — Medical Device News & Articles | MassDevice
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Following the U.S. House of Representatives’ sweeping repeal of the impending 2.3% medical device tax, lobbying efforts have turned to urging the Dem-led Senate to follow suit.
As a Senate bill repealing the medical device tax languishes without Democratic support, some have speculated that repeal efforts are dead in the water, but AdvaMed president & CEO Stephen Ubl took to the opinion pages to urge the nation’s upper house to spike the levy.
SonoSite (NSDQ:SONO) CFO Marcus Smith stands to pull down more than $3 million now that he’s retired from the Bothell, Wash.-based ultrasound device maker.
The company said Smith’s resignation, which went into effect yesterday, was to pursue other opportunities.
The former Philips Medical Systems exec will end up with more than $3 million in the bank after he receives all of his separation benefits, according to a company filing with the SEC.
Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, head of the FDA’s medical device arm, said a Northwestern University survey on the 510(k) clearance program “validates actions we are already taking” to improve the regulatory path for almost all medical devices.
“These efforts may not grab headlines, but they represent true actions we’re taking to promote innovation and protect the public health,” Shuren told an audience in Washington, D.C. this morning following a presentation of the survey results. “The 510(k) program has to adjust, but it has to adjust properly.”
Increasing numbers of medical device makers will look offshore to introduce new medical technologies unless the FDA can make its 510(k) review process more predictable, according to researchers from Northwestern University.
