WASHINGTON (AP) - White House officials are threatening to veto Republican legislation that would repeal a tax on medical devices sold in the U.S. that takes effect in January.
The 2.3 percent tax is to be paid by makers of most medical equipment, although items typically bought by consumers like hearing aids and bandages would be exempted.
House GOP leaders plan to pass the bill on Thursday.
Republicans and the medical device industry say the measure would cost jobs by making manufacturers less competitive. Democrats say the $29 billion the tax was designed to raise is part of how President Barack Obama's 2010 health care overhaul was financed.
The White House says the device industry is gaining millions of new customers from the health care overhaul. The industry says it is not.
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