Protecting Jobs & Patients

On Thursday morning, I held a hearing as Chairman of the Senate Finance Subcommittee on Health Care to consider the effects of the medical device tax. This ObamaCare tax would put tens of thousands of jobs at risk, hinder research and development on new medical devices, drive up costs for medical device manufacturers and, more importantly, harm care for patients who need life-saving medical devices.

Additionally, this tax could cost Pennsylvania's economy $100 million a year, causing job losses in our state and hurting the ability of companies to expand and hire workers. My view is that the medical device tax is not only onerous on its scale, but it's also badly designed.

We have had bipartisan support for repealing the medical device tax, and I am hopeful that we can achieve this goal during this Congress. I appreciate Bruce Huegel, the CFO of B. Braun in Bethlehem, and Mark Judge, a patient advocate from Pittsburgh, for traveling to Capitol Hill to testify at the hearing. You can watch my remarks from the hearing here.

When Republicans took back the majority in the Senate more than four months ago, I promised Pennsylvanians that I would work to reopen the Senate and restore it to the functioning, deliberative body it was intended to be.

We have done exactly that. In the last four months, we have passed bipartisan bills such as the Keystone Pipeline, fixed a major flaw in Medicare to protect seniors, approved a budget plan that reaches balance, and enacted the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act to ensure better mental health resources for our veterans. This week, the Senate also passed bipartisan legislation which I cosponsored that would crack down on the serious problem of human trafficking.

After years of dysfunction under the failed leadership of Senator Harry Reid (D-Nev.), the Senate conducted more than 100 amendment roll call votes in just the first three and a half months of the 114^th Congress - that's roughly seven times as many amendment votes conducted all of last year.

It's great to have a more functioning Senate so I can do the work the people of Pennsylvania sent me here to do. You can read more about this outstanding breakout of bipartisanship and progress here.

I recently toured the Foose School in Harrisburg and met with the students. My thanks go out to Superintendent Knight-Burney, Principal Wright, and the school board for hosting me during my visit.

I donated five computers to the school from my Senate office, and my Regional Manager John Frick delivered five more computers to Laurel Highlands High School in Uniontown. Visiting schools and meeting with students in Pennsylvania is a great way for me to connect with educators who are so dedicated to providing a safe place to learn and grow for our children. 

You can see more photos from my visit here.

Last week, I presented to Joseph Cafoncelli of Muhlenberg Township (Berks County) the Humanitarian Service Medal for his role in Operation Eagle Claw in 1980. Mr. Cafoncelli helped guard the service members who attempted to rescue the 52 hostages held in Iran and earned the citation, but due the classified nature of the mission, extra steps needed to be taken to obtain the medal. I am pleased my office was able to help Mr. Cafoncelli receive the medal he earned.

Our veterans deserve our unwavering support and appreciation. I was proud to stand with Joseph and his family as he received his medal. You can read more about this ceremony here.

On Saturday morning, I will join my wife, Kris, in a 5K race to raise awareness for multiple myeloma - a form of blood cancer. This is a personal issue for our family because Kris's mother was diagnosed last year. My wife is a tremendous athlete and I'm hoping I can keep up! I will report the results here next week.

But our family's efforts don't end on Saturday. This summer, Kris will be competing in the Ironman Lake Placid. This consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run. Finishing an Ironman takes an extraordinary amount of training and determination, and I look forward to cheering her on and seeing her cross the finish line.

You can read more about my wife, my mother-in-law, and multiple myeloma in a column Kris wrote here.