The Washington Free Beacon:
A New York-based provider of medical diagnostics products announced the company will cut its workforce by 10 percent–and says a tax in the Affordable Care Act is the reason.
Welch Allyn, headquartered in Skaneateles Falls, N.Y., announced Tuesday a workforce reduction of 275 over the next three years–or 10 percent of the company’s payroll. NBC Syracuse and Syracuse Post-Standard reports the company’s management has attributed the layoffs to the medical device tax in the health care law:
The moves are meant to prepare Welch Allyn to address the new “onerous” U.S. Medical Device Tax scheduled to take effect next year under the Affordable Care Act, the company said.
Competitors are making similar job cuts, Chadderdon said. “We know that many companies are postponing or canceling investment decisions, laying off employees and-or moving operations offshore,” he said.
The company can’t just pass on the tax increase to its customers — clinics, doctors’ offices and hospitals — who are already being pushed to cut costs, Chadderdon said.
Hmm. Seems that my post yesterday is more correct than people would believe.
http://floppingaces.net/most_wanted/compliance-with-obamacare-estimated-at-80-million-man-hours/#comment-385951
And what will happen to the medical devices, or ‘appliances’, with the layoff of people from these businesses. Not only will the rest of the workforce there have to spend more time ensuring compliance with Obamacare laws and regulations, but with the reduced workforce, even less time will be spent on quality assurance and the like, and the company’s products will suffer being of lesser quality.
What about the patients using those medical devices? Paying more for the products, for devices of lesser quality than before. Will that lessened quality eventually kill patients? That remains to be seen.
Unintended consequences. Or are they intended?
Most medical device manufacturers moved to Mexico years ago when even the threat of Hillarycare drove down their margins because hospitals formed buying groups.
Boston Scientific moved their manufacturing to China because of the tax on all manufactured supplies, not just those sold in the US. That was only 200 jobs.
The administration must be very upset at this announcement. Those losing their jobs will have not had enough time to give up looking for work prior to the election in order to help reduce the unemployment rate.