MASSDEVICE ON CALL — President Barack Obama took time in this weeks’ regular address to criticize the wave of "corporate inversions," in which companies, such as Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), are using outside-U.S. acquisitions to shift their headquarters overseas.
White House
Senate OKs $1T omnibus budget deal, restoring FDA user fees
The U.S. Senate yesterday approved an omnibus, $1.012 trillion budget bill that includes the restoration of some $85 million in user fees from medical device and pharmaceutical companies that was held in abeyance by sequestration.
President Barack Obama, who has until midnight tomorrow to sign the measure into law, is expected to quickly add his signature after the 72-26 vote in the Upper Chamber.
Medical device tax: Why low Obamacare enrollment numbers cut a hole in the argument against repeal
The medical device industry this week may have received the strongest argument yet for repealing the 2.3% medical device excise tax.
Dick Cheney’s hack-proof heart | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — When former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney was fitted in 2007 with an implanted defibrillator, doctors ordered the manufacturer to shut off the device’s wireless communication capacities, out of fear that the device may be vulnerable to cyber-attack.
In a 60 Minutes interview published over the weekend, Cheney’s cardiologist Dr. Jonathan Reiner said that the was aware of cybersecurity concerns with medical devices and that he felt it was necessary to protect the prominent public figure from malicious hackers.
Reports: Medical device tax is off the table
Washington was a hive of activity again over the weekend and into yesterday, as legislators worked to hash out a deal to re-open the federal government and raise the debt ceiling.
But a proposed delay of the the medical device tax that’s part of Obamacare is reportedly dead in the water, after Senate Democrats rejected a plan by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) that would have seen the levy put off for 2 years.
Medical device tax: President Obama finally open to change, Sen. Republicans say
Efforts to repeal the medical device tax have gained unprecedented ground, with Senate Republicans emerging from a White House meeting saying that President Barack Obama is willing to consider changes to the levy.
Medical device tax: Is the White House changing its tone?
After months of stark rejection of any measure to repeal the medical device tax, the White House signaled this week that it may be willing to consider a repeal bill as long as it comes with a pay-for.
U.S. government shutdown pivots on medical device tax
The medical device tax is a political football today, as the U.S. Congress wrangles over a spending bill House Republicans want to use to repeal the tax and delay Obamacare by a year.
Without funding, the federal government is slated to shut down at midnight tonight when the fiscal 2014 year begins. Both Senate majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and the White House have sworn to shoot down any spending bill that would affect Obamacare.
Markets waver as U.S. shutdown looms
Investors in markets from Brazil to Beijing blinked today as the U.S. government poised to put itself on shutdown, a move economists fear will send uncertainty surging across the globe.
House votes to repeal medical device tax, delay Obamacare
The U.S. House of Representatives voted today to repeal the medical device tax and delay the implementation of Obamacare by a year. Both the White House and Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) immediately promised to reject the vote, setting the stage for a government shutdown.
The House voted 248-174 to repeal the tax and 231-192 to delay Obamacare by a year. The measures are pegged to a continuing resolution that would keep the federal government funded until Dec. 15, forestalling the shutdown slated for the Oct. 1 start of the federal fiscal year.
IRS nails down individual mandate non-compliance fines | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — The IRS this week published detailed rules for the individual insurance mandate , finalizing the law’s penalty for noncompliance.
In the 1st year without insurance the fine will be $95, or 1% of household income. Subsequently, the fine will increase to $695 per person, or 2.5% of household income, and then adjust to the cost of living along those lines.