Innovation Under Siege
BY:
Thomas Novelli
It was only a few months ago when the U.S. device industry's primary concerns with health care reform were reserved to a few, select critical areas of competing legislative proposals. Issues ranging from transparency of industry payments to health care providers, comparative effectiveness research and payment reform were thought to be the proposals most likely to affect the device industry over the course of the next decade. However, in September 2009, the industry was thrown a curve ball when a health care reform proposal generated by the United States Senate Committee on Finance included a $40 billion "fee" on the industry. more....