Business Roundtable

Washington – Business Roundtable (BRT) today welcomed House Ways and Means Committee approval of H.R. 436, the Protect Medical Innovation Act of 2011, which would repeal a $30 billion medical device tax, and called for swift action by the full U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate.

“As the providers of health care coverage to more than 40 million Americans, Business Roundtable CEOs have consistently opposed taxes and fees on medical devices, insurance plans and pharmaceuticals that will simply be passed on to consumers and do nothing to improve the efficiency or quality of the health care system,” said BRT President John Engler. “We commend Rep. Erik Paulsen and Chairman Dave Camp for their leadership and taking the first step in repealing this tax on medical devices.”

H.R. 436, approved today by the House Ways and Means Committee, would repeal the 2.3 percent federal tax on medical device sales scheduled to take effect in January. BRT CEOs have opposed the tax since it was enacted as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in March 2010, and called for elimination of the tax in their pro-growth policy agenda, ‘Taking Action for America: A CEO Plan for Jobs and Economic Growth,’ released earlier this year.