[HailGreen28]

Originally Posted by NC_Skins

snip

Those links really don't support your own positions very much:

From your own links:

All of that being said, there is room for improvement in how the medical device tax is assessed. Small companies that are often engines for important innovations need more protection from the tax. Any potential impact of the tax on R&D in the United States needs to be rethought and changed. Medical innovation is a powerful resource of the United States and a growing pillar of our economy.

Subsequent to posting this article, Thomas C. Novelli, VP Government Affairs of the Medical Device Manufacturers Association, pointed out to me: "There is no tiered-approach to the device tax and the tax applies to companies regardless to revenue. And since this tax is based purely on revenue, the smaller companies (which constitutes the majority of the industry) will bear the brunt of the tax. Many of these companies are either not profitable or have a very low profit margin. Both the Bloomberg article, and the corresponding articles that cite the Bloomberg article (including the CBPP) fail to consider this reality."

and

Tax Will Have Minimal Effect on Consumers

The effect of the excise tax on consumers’ costs for health care and health insurance will be minimal and will be swamped by other factors. Spending on taxable medical devices represents less than 1 percent of total personal health expenditures, so a small increase in their price would have an almost imperceptible effect on health insurance premiums.

"Swamped by other factors". Not very comforting. Especially since we all know out premiums are indeed going up, for all the "concessions" made by the health care industry to cover more people.