Brady Pushes to Restore Freedom to Purchase of Over-the-Counter Medicines

Washington, D.C. -The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation, cosponsored by senior committee member Congressman Kevin Brady of Texas, to repeal ObamaCare’s medical device tax and its ban on patients using their health savings accounts to buy needed over-the-counter medicines.

“If the tax goes into effect next year, it will cost Texas nearly 2,000 jobs and almost $145 million from paychecks,” said Brady. “Repealing ObamaCare’s tax on medical devices will save 43,000 American jobs, lower costs for patients and encourage more research into life-saving devices.”

Brady added, “Giving families back the freedom to use their health savings accounts to buy affordable medicine stretches their budgets and keeps them from being forced to see a doctor for unnecessary prescriptions – which was yet another Washington-knows-best mandate within ObamaCare.”

ObamaCare is paid for in part by taxing lifesaving and pain reducing medical devices like heart stents, pacemakers, MRI machines and artificial joints. This tax due to hit next year will either be passed through to patients in the form of higher prices and insurance premiums or the companies that manufacturer these medical devices will be forced to lay off workers and cut research and development. Many of these medical device manufacturers are small startup companies with marginal profits who can least afford a tax assessed on their sales. 

The Committee also repealed ObamaCare’s “Medicine Cabinet Tax” which prohibits Americans from spending their own money through flexible spending arrangements (FSAs), health reimbursement arrangements (HRAs), health savings accounts (HSAs), and Archer medical savings accounts (Archer MSAs) for non-prescription medicines.