On March 21, with an overwhelming vote of 79-20, the Senate Democrats voted to repeal the 2.3 percent sales tax on medical devices such as catheters, pacemakers and MRI machines. This was intended to help finance coverage for the uninsured that starts in 2014.
This is one of the first steps in stripping away the unpopular law signed by President Obama in March, 2010. The question could be, "how will the uninsured get financed for coverage?". It could eventually move towards a single payer system, however, the United States Government cannot finance such a big bill. Social Security could be an example that we do not want to repeat.
The medical device industry lobbied pretty hard for something like this to happen. They would take a huge hit and be forced to lay-off employees. Many of them hold well paying jobs in the industry. The government will lose more in tax from the income, than the tax on medical devices (most likely).
It will be interesting to see the repercussions of this bold move. It is possible there will be no impact. The tax could have been a sneaky way to get the bill passed but does not contribute to the healthcare bill at all. It could also mean many who were still hoping this bill was their insurance savor, are now left empty handed.
The White House was quick to make a statement about this move. According to a spokesperson, this move to repeal the medical device tax will not have any impact on the Affordable Care Act. They continue by saying the bill has helped, and continue to help by insuring many who once had no insurance.
They are correct. It has help many dependents under the age of 26 who still live with their parents, to get put back on mom and dad's health plan again. Also, in January 2014, the law will cover people with no preexisting clause. This has nothing to do with the tax, at least at this point.
It could be that the financing will be passed onto the policy holders, once again. The premiums have already increased drastically for policy holders. The premiums could go up more to offset the 2.3 percent the government was looking for. There is no indication of this happening, but it would not be a surprise to most people in America.
This is a major push for those who are not in favor of Obamacare. As we head into 2014, we will see how it all unfolds. Some will remember the screaming crowds in 1965 when Medicare was passed. Today, many look forward to receiving Medicare benefits. Although, Social Security and Medicare are about to have one of the biggest train wrecks in history; many are not doing anything about it due to how many seniors are in favor of it. Obamacare could be similar to the massive Medicare bill of 1965. Can this country take on another massive bill similar to Medicare? Maybe we wait for America's National Healthcare disaster as the program becomes short on cash.
Butch Zemar
www.EliteBenefits.net