Massachusetts has 2nd largest concentration of medical device development in the country

Washington (December 19, 2019) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) released the following statement after the U.S. Senate repealed the medical device excise tax as part of its passage today of end-of-the-year spending legislation. In 2018, Senators Markey and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) introduced legislation to eliminate the 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices, which applied to everything from surgical tools to defibrillators.

“The repeal of the medical device tax is good news for Massachusetts’s robust medical device industry and innovation economy,” said Senator Markey. “I was never in favor of the medical device tax and worked in the House of Representatives with the rest of the state’s Congressional delegation to remove that provision from the Affordable Care Act. Bay State companies pay a disproportionate share of this tax since we are a national leader in this live-saving industry. Our medical device companies can now focus on inventing the next generation of treatments and cures, and creating jobs that support economic growth and continued innovation.” 

There are more than 6,500 medical device companies in the United States supporting more than two million jobs across the country – including 24,815 jobs in Massachusetts alone. The medical device industry adds $5.7 billion to the Commonwealth’s economy.

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