Posted on 12/13/2012 9:58:59 AM PST by neverdem
Sixteen Democratic senators who voted for the Affordable Care Act are asking that one of its fundraising mechanisms, a 2.3 percent tax on medical devices scheduled to take effect January 1, be delayed. Echoing arguments made by Republicans against Obamacare, the Democratic senators say the levy will cost jobs in a statement Monday, Sen. Al Franken called it a job-killing tax and also impair American competitiveness in the medical device field.
The senators, who made the request in a letter(PDF) to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, are Franken, Richard Durbin, Charles Schumer, Patty Murray, John Kerry, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, Joseph Lieberman, Ben Nelson, Robert Casey, Debbie Stabenow, Barbara Mikulski, Kay Hagan, Herb Kohl, Jeanne Shaheen, and Richard Blumenthal. All voted for Obamacare.
Two other Democrats, senators-elect Joe Donnelly and Elizabeth Warren, also signed the letter. Donnelly voted for Obamacare as a member of the House. Warren was not in Congress at the time.
The medical technology industry directly employs over 400,000 people in the United States and is responsible for a total of two million skilled manufacturing jobs, the senators wrote in a December 4 letter to Reid. We must do all we can to ensure that our country maintains its global leadership position in the medical technology industry and keeps good jobs here at home.
Beyond that, the senators say, the medical device industry has received little guidance about how to comply with the tax a reference to the apparently confused and halting nature of the Obama administrations implementation of Obamacare.
Several of the senators, many of whom have medical device manufacturers in their states, have opposed the tax for a long time. During the Obamacare debate, for example, Franken and Klobuchar were among a group of senators who successfully pushed to reduce the tax. (The device giant Medtronic is headquartered in Minnesota.)
On Monday, Franken again expressed his opposition to the tax he voted for. I want to repeal the medical device tax altogether, the senator and former comedian said in a statement. But I am concerned that we are running out of time before this job-killing tax goes into effect. So, for now, the best thing to do to ensure that this important industry continues to create jobs and producing life-saving devices is to delay this unwise tax. Franken and other want Reid to include a provision to delay the tax in the ongoing fiscal cliff negotiations.
None of the senators found his or her earlier objections to the tax a sufficient reason to vote against Obamacare. In December 2009, with 60 votes in the Senate and a determined Republican opposition, Democrats needed every vote they could get to pass the presidents national health care plan. But now, with Obamacare and the taxes to fund it about to become a reality, some of those Democrats are singing a different tune.
Eat it, Al Franken
...nothing like a two sided sword, continuing to price America out of the global market....and destroying jobs all in one stroke. Yeah oh yeah, Obama!
We know how this administration rolls - friends will get their waivers, the press will yawn, and Obamacare will continue destroying every other thing in its path.
Don’t get excited, it’s only about the tax on medical equipment.
“Me, Al Franken, a dummass.”
What rotten people.
This tax that they passed has been coming for a long time.
Only NOW do they complain?
Odungoville
For the next two years, if I was running the GOP I would make sure that commercials are run every week in every state that is affected by this. I would affix the Senator and Congress critters names to it.
Each day there would be letters to the editors and editorials written about it. I would also Alinsky them.
They own it.
Well, it seems to me that he ‘gets it’. When he came to the conclusion would be interesting...before or after he voted for it. Hmmm, wonder if he’ll use the Pelosi Excuse...I had to vote for it before I knew what was in it.
Nope. You broke it. You own it.
See you in 2014.
So now they want to defund Obamacare...who’s gonna pay for it then?
That wasn't an earthquake in Japan... it was the shock wave after so many Liberals slapped themselves in the forehead at the same time!
Suckers...
Blue Shield of California seeks rate hikes up to 20%
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-blue-shield-rates-20121213,0,6546740.story
Aetna CEO Sees Obama Health Law Doubling Some Premiums
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-12/aetna-ceo-sees-obama-health-law-doubling-some-premiums.html
bookmark
Heck, it’s only about 3 Billion a year over the next decade.
Do you think that extra income will solve any budget problems....:^)
To my way of thinking, if something is good, its good, if it is not, it is not. If you liked this provision of Obamacare, then live with it. If this tax harms a shaky economy, it certainly will be harmful during other portions of the business cycle. It is similar to all the exemptions that were handed out. If Obamacare is so good, there shouldn’t be a need for exemptions. If there is a need for exemptions, shouldn’t everyone get one?
all fake,like their boss.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.