From the Detroit News: Taxpayers, especially businesses, will be hit with billions of dollars in new charges starting in January under provisions of the Affordable Care Act that will be ushered in with the new year.
Among the new provisions is a surtax on investment income for those earning $250,000 or more, a $2,500 cap on flexible spending accounts and a 2.3 percent excise tax on manufacturers of medical devices that has led Kalamazoo-based Stryker Corp. to slim its workforce.
The looming health taxes have taken a back seat to the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts set to automatically increase Jan. 1 unless Congress takes action to avoid the recession-threatening "fiscal cliff." While the biggest provisions of the health care act — namely the individual mandate — won't take effect until 2014, notable tax provisions have taken hold, and some businesses say the coming wave will exacerbate an anemic business climate.
Stryker, which makes products ranging from EMS stretchers to knee replacements and surgical tools, is trimming about 1,000 employees from its global workforce of more than 20,000 in anticipation of the 2.3 percent tax on its sales of medical devices.
The company estimates it will owe $100 million in the first year, or about 20 percent of its global research and development investments.
"Stryker remains significantly concerned with the upcoming medical device excise tax and its negative impact on jobs and innovation, and will continue to work with Congress to try to repeal the tax," Stryker CEO Kevin A. Lobo said in a statement.
From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20121225/METRO/212250311#ixzz2G3E9wxQO
Unless you are a complete idiot, why would anybody support ObamaCare, especially now? ObamaCare has already cost thousands of people their jobs and ObamaCare probably has hurt more people than it will help.
And yet we are stuck with this bozo for 4 more years.
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I think it is fairer to say that companies are using "ObamaCare" as an excuse to fire people. Using it as a shield. In many cases, the layoffs or cutbacks are announced in a very, very political way, often in anticipation of something happening that has not been demonstrated to even be a real concern. Much the same as the many companies who laid people off immediately after the election, even though nothing particularly had changed yet.
ReplyDeleteThis company, for example, cutting 5% of its staff in anticipation of a tax on its devices? Where are they getting this $100mil estimate? How do they know it will cost them much of anything? They don't yet. They're guessing, and who knows if it's even the real reason for the cutbacks.
Jamie, that's a major problem- employers don't know what is going to happen. They don't know for sure how much it will cost them. So, they have to be pro-active to save their companies.
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