The U.S. Senate voted 79-20 in favor of a bipartisan amendment that would repeal the medical device tax.
The measure, proposed by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), is a non-binding amendment contained in a the Senate’s continuing budget resolution, but the win may be an important step forward for opponents of the device tax.
Repeal efforts have had a hard time gaining traction in the Democrat-led Senate as some members voiced concern about how the government would make up for the $30 billion in revenue the tax is slated to generate over 10 years.
The Klobuchar-Hatch amendment would would establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to help offset the cost of repealing the tax.
Senator Kelly Ayotte took to Twitter to voice her support for the measure, announcing victory shortly after the amendment passed.
Sen voted 79-20 to provide for repeal of med device tax-a step in the rt direction. I will continue fight to roll back this job-killing tax.
— Kelly Ayotte (@KellyAyotte) March 22, 2013
So glad amendment on medical device tax repeal I cosponsored passed on the budget resolution 79-20. We have to repeal this job killing tax!
— Kelly Ayotte (@KellyAyotte) March 22, 2013