California Life Sciences Association Commends New Legislation to Suspend Medical Device Tax

December 12, 2017 |

2 min read

California Life Sciences Association applauded the introduction of H.R. 4617, which suspends until December 2022 the job and innovation destroying 2.3% medical device excise tax levied on medical device firms originally established as part of the Affordable Care Act.

Dec. 12, 2017 23:02 UTC

Newly introduced House bill would delay 2.3% medical device excise tax for 5 years

WASHINGTON & SAN DIEGO & SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- California Life Sciences Association, the trade association representing California’s life sciences industry, today applauded the introduction of H.R. 4617, which suspends until December 2022 the job and innovation destroying 2.3% medical device excise tax levied on medical device firms originally established as part of the Affordable Care Act. This statement can be attributed to Sara Radcliffe, President & CEO, California Life Sciences Association:

“California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) welcomes the introduction of H.R. 4617, legislation that places a 5-year suspension on the ill-conceived 2.3% medical device excise tax. Without swift enactment of this measure, the medical device tax would further hamper innovation and investment in medical technology research and development.

“According to our newly released 2018 California Life Sciences Industry Report, California is home to 1,796 medical device firms employing over 77,200 people – more firms and employees than any other state in the nation – making the impact of the tax on our state particularly troublesome. While our medtech innovators certainly welcome a 5-year reprieve from the tax, CLSA applauds this legislation as a positive first step towards full repeal of the device tax, which is critical to ensuring that the U.S. does not jeopardize our position as a global leader in medical technology innovation.

“CLSA thanks House Ways & Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady and Reps. Erik Paulsen and Jackie Walorski for introducing this critical bill, and we strongly urge our California congressional delegation to support this measure to suspend this counterproductive tax on innovation.”

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Click here to view the legislation.
Click here to view CLSA’s Legislative Action Center, urging Congress to scrap the device tax.
To learn more about California’s life sciences industry, visit www.califesciencesindustry.com.

About California Life Sciences Association (CLSA)

California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) is the state’s largest and most influential life sciences advocacy and business leadership organization. With offices in Sacramento, San Diego, South San Francisco, Los Angeles and Washington DC, CLSA works closely with industry, government, academia and others to shape public policy, improve access to innovative technologies and grow California’s life sciences economy. CLSA serves biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics companies, research universities and institutes, investors and service providers throughout the Golden State. CLSA was founded in 2015 when the Bay Area Bioscience Association (BayBio) and the California Healthcare Institute (CHI) merged. Visit CLSA at www.califesciences.org, and follow us on Twitter @CALifeSciences, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.