How the Kentucky Delegation Voted on the Repeal of Medical Device Tax
By Theresa Camoriano
Part of Obamacare was a tax on medical devices. This tax will create a great burden on medical device manufacturers, which will largely prevent them from being able to innovate and create new, life-saving and life-enhancing medical devices. The vast majority of House members recognized the problem and voted to repeal that tax. Now it goes to the Senate for consideration.
Of the six-member Kentucky delegation, everyone voted to repeal this oppressive and destructive tax except John Yarmuth. Apparently, Yarmuth is so wedded to his socialist ideology that he doesn’t mind doing great harm to people with illnesses who need innovation in medical devices.
People with diabetes who need better devices for testing their blood sugar levels and better ways of dispensing insulin to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. People whose joints have worn out who need better prosthetic joints. People with heart disease who need better pacemakers, defibrillators, and stents. Of course, if the device manufacturers are not crippled by this tax, we can expect them to continue coming up with devices we have not even yet imagined to make our lives longer and more pleasant and to treat and cure a wide variety of illnesses, including cancer.
But John Yarmuth doesn’t care.
Or he does not realize that, when a beloved member of his family gets an illness that would have been alleviated by a device that has not yet even been imagined, that device will not exist, thanks to the tax on medical devices. Of course, he believes that all good innovations come from government grants, which he favors, but that, of course, is not the case. The best way to encourage innovation in medical devices is just to allow the medical device manufacturers to keep the money they earn so they can re-invest it in doing what they know best.
This is definitely one of those cases in which what you don’t know can hurt you and the people you love. Thank goodness the rest of the Kentucky delegation has better sense. Let’s hope the U.S. Senate does, too.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
