This episode of The Motley Fool's Market Checkup drills down on the hottest headlines and biggest market movers in the health-care sector.
In this video, health-care analysts David Williamson and Max Macaluso discuss Washington, D.C.'s impact on health-care stocks. On the eve of the Affodable Care Act's state-based insurance exchanges going live, a federal government shutdown looms. While the House of Representatives first attempted continuing resolution would have kept the government running in return for defunding Obamacare, the second try involved delaying the law for a year and repealing a 2.3% excise tax on medical device makers, while a reported third might try to delay the individual mandate.
The tax has been particularly tough for unprofitable device companies like Mako Surgical, but that did not stop Stryker from purchasing the robotic surgery specialist at more than an 80% premium last week. Watch and find out how a shutdown will impact the launch of Obamacare's insurance exchanges and why the medical device tax is a prime target for a legislative fix.
