Congressional Math and the Healthcare "Reconciliation" Bill

Only in Washington DC does spending $940 billion add up to a $100 billion savings.


By now many of you have seen the headlines discussing how the CBO has estimated that HR 3590 will "save" $100 billion off the deficit over the next 10 years. There has been a lot of dancing in the streets that somehow this is a wonderful thing.

Don't get me wrong -- I would very much like our federal deficit to be reduced....but there are just a few things that are bugging me about why this latest proclamation should be the reason our lawmakers should vote "yes"....

First, the CBO numbers are not final. They are preliminary...and based on a very optimistic assumption that the government will be able to gain greater cost savings and efficiencies on Medicare costs...More importantly, the CBO numbers do not take into account the House reconciliation bill which amends the original Senate bill -- which adds additional costs and increased taxes (some of the additional costs and taxes are mentioned in today's Reuters article.) 

Second, last time I checked, if you spent more than you saved...well then you haven't really saved. At least that's how it works with regards to my finances. HR 3590 will cost $940 billion (that's nearly a trillion folks) over the next 10 years -- and those are the Democrats estimates. That doesn't include the fact that the bill is expected to do NOTHING to reduce healthcare costs (check out my earlier blog post on this yesterday). Yup, all of this government regulation and we will still have escalating health care premiums, costs, etc.

Third, listen carefully to what the supporters of this legislation are saying now versus what they (and our President) said before. Initially, this legislation was supposed to be about reducing escalating healthcare costs. Reducing the deficit by $100 billion (while spending $940 billion - can anyone tell me the math on this one?) -- does not have anything to do with fixing what's wrong with our healthcare system. Passing this bill will not create increased competition (that would reduce health insurance premiums), it will not create job growth (outside of DC where we will have even more bureaucracy), and it will not reduce healthcare costs. In fact, it will have the exact opposite effect when you consider that the large taxes, fees and fines that will be imposed on health insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, large health insurance plans, and companies (who do not provide insurance coverage) will ultimately trickle down to you and me in terms of higher costs and less jobs.

Fourth, lets not forget the additional costs that will be added onto the American taxpayer to "pass" this legislation...what I'm talking about is all the pork and "favors" that have been included in this bill to garner votes. The Democrats have made a big deal out of the fact that the reconciliation bill nixes the "Nebraska" provision -- but that was only one of many "provisions" that were added by the Senate to win votes.

That said, some people would have you believe that the reason to support this bill is that there is no other option. Nothing could be further from the truth. Several Republicans have proposed legislation that would not impose new taxes (thereby hindering economic growth) and would create market and tax incentives to encourage greater health care savings for individuals and families, as well as encouraging companies to provide health insurance coverage to their employees. HR 3400 creates a safety net for individuals with pre-existing conditions, allows for individuals to purchase health insurance across state lines (which would encourage more competitive pricing of plans) and allows for individuals and small businesses to pool resources together to achieve greater discounts on health insurance plans. Ironically this bill was introduced last summer (yup, before HR 3590). The reason you've probably never heard of it is because there was virtually NO MEDIA COVERAGE of the bill. I encourage you to check it out.

I urge you to call your congressman, congresswoman and Senators TODAY, TOMORROW and SUNDAY to tell them to vote NO, absolutely NO on HR 3590 and HR 4872. And please urge your friends and family to call as well!







Respectfully,



E.E. Wang Lukowski