In his State of the Union last week, Barrack Obama made special mention of advanced manufacturing (by extension medical device manufacturing) as the linchpin of rebuilding the economy, and focused on ensuring that those jobs are not lost. He proposed tax code amendments to ensure that firms no longer get tax breaks for relocating overseas while lowering taxes for companies that choose to retain manufacturing in the United States.

What Obama didn’t mention was healthcare reform and the impending device tax. And, as unpopular as the device tax might be, no one seems to have the right answers on how to fight it. In fact, Nick Woods recently suggested that some of the arguments against the device tax (e.g., it would lead to offshoring, lost jobs) aren’t really resonating. Perhaps it is time to revise our tactics.

To that end, in the fight against the Device Tax, MedCity News outlined an action plan, based on SOPA resistance that the medical device industry could follow. Is it time for a civil action? 

—Heather Thompson