CBO: Senate HCR Bill Reduces the Deficit by 118 Billion

Source: Daily Kos

http://cboblog.cbo.gov/?p=488

CBO: Senate HCR Bill Reduces the Deficit by 118 Billion!
by Bensonola

Thu Mar 11, 2010 at 08:02:13 AM PST

Breaking Right now, from the director's blog the Senate HCR bill will reduce the deficit by 118 billion over 10years.

http://cboblog.cbo.gov/...


Estimate of the Budgetary Effects of the Senate-Passed Health Bill

CBO has just released an estimate of the budgetary effects of the health bill, H.R. 3590, that passed the Senate on December 24. Today’s estimate differs from the estimate for a slightly earlier version of the legislation that we released on December 19 in that it encompasses all of the amendments that were adopted by the Senate, reflects a revised assumption about its enactment date, and incorporates some technical revisions. We and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) prepared this updated estimate in preparation for further consideration of health care legislation. However, the changes we have made do not result in an estimate that differs substantially from the earlier one.

CBO and JCT now estimate that, on balance, the direct (mandatory) spending and revenue effects of enacting H.R. 3590 as passed by the Senate would yield a net reduction in federal deficits of $118 billion over the 2010–2019 period. (Direct spending—as distinguished from discretionary spending—is spending that stems from legislation other than appropriation acts.) In our earlier estimate, the budgetary impact was a net reduction in deficits of $132 billion.

The gross cost of the proposed expansions in insurance coverage over those 10 years is now projected to be $875 billion, reflecting subsidies provided through insurance exchanges, increased net outlays for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and tax credits for small employers. Those costs are partly offset by revenues from an excise tax on high-premium insurance plans and net savings from other coverage-related sources, leaving a net cost of $624 billion for the coverage provisions. Other provisions affecting direct spending save $478 billion, on net—mostly in Medicare—and other provisions affecting revenues reduce the deficit by $264 billion, on net. Thus, the net effect on deficits of the bill as a whole equals $624 billion less $478 billion less $264 billion, or a reduction of $118 billion over the 2010-2019 period. In total, CBO and JCT estimate that the legislation would increase outlays by $355 billion and increase revenues by $473 billion between 2010 and 2019.




Read more: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2010/3/11/834578/-CBO:-Senate-HCR-Bill-Reduces-the-Deficit-by-118-Billion!

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http://www.politico.com/livepulse/0310/CBO_scores_the_Senate_bill.html
Senate Health Bill Would Cut Deficit By $118 Billion Over Decade
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/11/senate-health-bill-would_n_494993.html

From the above information, it's clear that $250 billion comes from the excise tax that is extremely unpopular. If it's either done away with, or postponed until 2018 (as has been discussed) that deficit reduction goes completely out the window.

That's without adding public option or any of the goodies likely to be part of the reconciliation bill. HCR might make moral sense, if it really does cover more people, but it will NOT save us a dime. You simply cannot provide more care, for more people, and save money, unless you figure out how to get rid of a LOT of overhead.

Eliminating CEO salaries and advertising expenses alone aren't going to cut it, we need to reduce defensive medicine in this country, and that's going to require a look at the tort system. No, I'm not talking about caps, but perhaps we need to consider an alternative to the expensive, inefficient, uncertain, and secretive court system that we use now.

So this bill will save ME money, how?

Make health insurance payments from employers taxable. Ok, gotta pay more taxes.

Cut medicare. M-kay.

Whatta deal. How about telling me how it reduces my insurance premium that just went up 12%. How about telling me how it reduces my co-pays that just went up 25%. And how much is that tax again?

Oh, yeah, we'll fix it later...like we did that Medicare part D.


<on edit> Oh yeah, I forgot---- Go Dennis!!!!

Would be interesting to see the score if the Senate bill included the public option.

you know, the one they were supposed to have to us last fuckin summer.

We pay 2.4T$/yr where by every decent country's standard we could be paying .9T$/yr, saving US 1.5T$ each year.

Yes, that's the demise of a 1.5T$/yr Health-Care-Denial industry. But, I say, so what. What's good for the auto companies is as good for the rest of US.