Efforts to strike down the unpopular medical device excise tax proved fruitless late last week when the U.S. Senate voted against an amendment that would kill the tax.

The amendment, co-sponsored by Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) and Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.), was defeated 56-42. Two democrats, Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) voted alongside Republicans to defeat the tax.

Back in January, Brown gained support from the medical device industry when he promised to "stop the health care bill" if elected, according to Mass Device. There is concern that the tax will hurt small businesses.
The Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council wrote Brown a letter asking him to keep his promise when he was elected.

"At a time when unemployment in Massachusetts is hovering near ten percent, Sen. Brown believes Congress should be doing everything in their power to create jobs, not imposing a jobs-killing tax that will hurt businesses and consumers in the Commonwealth," spokesman Colin Reid told DOTmed News.

The 2.3 percent excise tax on the sale of medical devices, reported last week by DOTmed News, has sent the industry into an uproar. Opponents are fighting to amend the tax with a proposal that would exempt companies earning less than $100 million a year from paying the tax, saying it will cause a huge financial burden.

The tax, which is set to go into effect in 2013, is slated to raise $20 billion to help fund health care reform.

Brown is scheduled to speak about his efforts to repeal the tax at two medical device companies in Massachusetts this week.

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