Word: taxingly
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
There's a gender issue too, as roughly 86% of people seeking cosmetic enhancements are women, ASPS data show. The National Organization for Women (NOW) has spoken out against the tax. As Terry O'Neill, NOW's president, told the New York Times, "[Women] are going for Botox or going for eye work because we live in a society that punishes women for getting older." NOW's opposition to the tax elicited some hand-wringing at the Times, as Times blogger Judith Warner lamented, "Women's empowerment becomes a matter of a tight face and a flat belly...
Another concern is that the tax would open up a Pandora's box that would probably pit doctors against bureaucrats over what is considered cosmetic and what is reconstructive. "For example, I do a lot of breast reconstruction, so when I'm treating a cancer patient's normal breast and putting in a lift to match the reconstructed breast, is that elective or is that reconstructive?" says Saltz. "Now, who's going to make that decision? Is it going to be a bureaucrat or a tax person that's going to tell me or my patient that they have...
Saltz expects the tax would trigger a surge in people traveling outside the country for cosmetic procedures. Partridge agrees, saying, "People do shop around - cosmetic surgery is very competitive." (See the top 10 tax dodgers...
Then there's the confidentiality issue. "If this is a tax, then one would assume the IRS is going to be involved - and so are they then going to be auditing our patient billing? And therefore how do we maintain patient confidentiality under that circumstance?" says McGuire...
Opposition to the tax appears to be gaining momentum. A coalition of plastic surgeons and medical trade groups have sent letters to Congress and set up a website called stopcosmetictax.org, where people are urged to sign petitions and contact their Senators. (See the 10 worst fast-food meals...