In January the sale of medical devices will be taxed.

        I have taken it on myself to write our senators in Illinois, about an upcoming vote to repeal a tax.  This tax will begin in January of next year.  It will tax the sale of medical devices.  The tax will be paid by the manufacturers.  Because apparently, if you are a lawmaker, you are either so daft, or so arrogant, that you don't realize the cost to hospitals will go up by the same 2.3% you have decided to tax the manufacturers.  I wonder how the hospitals will make that back?  Yes, folks, it is another indirect tax they are hoping we wont notice, or will blame the hospitals and  not Washington.  

       In a change of format, I will provide the text of the message I sent to our Senators.  The House has already voted 270-146 to repeal this tax so, for now, they are in the clear, on this issue.

Message below:

       I have already written on behalf of my company to you.  I am speaking now as a private citizen.  A 2.3% tax on the sale of medical devices, paid by the manufacturer, will only be added to the cost of the sale.  Hospitals, who can least afford it, and are currently being pressured by new regulations, an increase in the percentage of non-paying clients, and pressure from the insurance companies, (also caused by Washington), will end up paying this indirect tax.  This type of indirect tax should be made unlawful.  It is dishonest and insulting to our intelligence.  In this case it will also either cause the collapse of our healthcare infrastructure to accelerate, or the loss of even more U.S. manufacturing jobs.  I would say thanks for listening, but there is little chance you will ever directly see this. So to the staffer who does read this: please relay my profound displeasure over this tax.  I understand there is a vote coming, naturally after the November elections, to repeal this.  This unfair, unscrupulous, and frankly immoral tax should be repealed immediately, regardless of the winner of the Presidential election, or the political climate.  

End Message

       Here are some web pages that allow you to message the staffer who might eventually summarize what you have written into a thumbs-down.  (Or thumbs-up, you might want to pay more for healthcare.  I'm not you.  I don't know.)  At any rate, here is how to futilely attempt to have your voice heard.

http://www.kirk.senate.gov/?p=comment_on_legislation   For Mark Kirk

http://durbin.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/contact              For Dick Durbin.

Feel free to copy-paste my message.  It might be taken to mean a level of organization, and maybe even scare them into doing their jobs for a change.  

Thanks for listening.