The medical device and supply industry is big in Indiana, employing about 20,000 Hoosiers and paying about $1.1 billion a year in salaries. The president of just one company, Cook Medical of Bloomington, estimates the new taxes on the industry required by Obamacare will cost it $15 5o $20 million a year. Zimmer Holdings, an orthopedics maker based in Warsaw, estimates a $50 million a year cost. Most of the companies contacted by The Indianapolis Star say they don't plan on laying off people. An industry analyst says there likely won't be a dramatic change in the billions spent by the industry on new products each year, but the companies "might pass on some more marginal products in their pipeline." Some companies are waiting to see what the details of the new tax obligations will be, and others are considering spending a lot of lobbgying money to get the law repealed:
But not all are so sure. Aaron Vaughn, a medical-device analyst for Edward Jones and Co. in St. Louis, said the industry is more likely to get a few tweaks in the law, rather than a massive rollback.
He expects the companies to try to pass along most of the additional cost to hospitals, doctors and patients.
Big surprise there, huh? Just one small piece of the Obamacare plan to redistribute wealth make health care more affordable and available to all.
