The Congressional Budget Office today released its analysis of the Senate Finance Committee's amended health care bill. The nonpartisan CBO estimated that the bill would cost $829 billion and reduce the federal deficit by $81 billion over the next 10 years. The CBO also reported that 94 percent of eligible Americans could be expected to obtain coverage under the measure, up from the current 83 percent.
The report clears the way for the Finance Committee, chaired by Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., to take a final vote on the plan, probably later this week.
Reaction to the CBO analysis split along party lines. "The report, I think, is quite promising," Baucus said. Added Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., "We are closer than ever before to delivering Americans access to quality, affordable health care in a fiscally responsible way."
Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., said the CBO report is "an estimate of a concept, not a formal cost analysis of an actual bill" and that a formal bill text is needed "before we begin a lengthy debate about whether it's the right direction for our country."
What do you think? Read the text of the CBO analysis of the America's Health Future Act as amended (PDF).
You can read the full text of the Finance Committee's health care bill here (PDF).
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
12 comments:
Number of Americans Dying from Being Uninsured or Under-Insured Will Greatly Exceed Number Murdered During the Holocaust
Is it possible that those individuals and groups that oppose universal health coverage are worse than the Nazi's?
As many as 80 million Americans are uninsured or underinsured, which means they have little access to a regular physician, checkups, preventive services, affordable prescription drugs, dental care or screening tests.
Up to 100,000 lives could be saved if the country's health-care system performed as well those in nations such as France, Japan and Australia, according to the Commonwealth Fund study, which was based on World Health Organization statistics.
After the horrors of the Holocaust were known, All of us swore that we would never standby and let it happen again. However with 100,000 people dying each year because they are under-insured, I will see 89 million individuals die during my lifetime. More than the Holocaust.
American life expectancy is about 80 years.
Since 1945, the most commonly cited figure for the total number of Jews killed during the Holocaust has been six million.
Now on youtube:"A Citizen's Response to President Barack Obama's Health Care Speech"http://www.youtube.com/user/greenspaceguy
Please watch the youtube speech I posted 4 days before Obama's speech. A full transcript appears below in my 9/6/09 blog entry. It contains a policy proposal that would have the federal government stop wasting $100 billion per year. This is the exact amount we need for Obama's plan.
If white collar work was scheduled for two different 8 hour shifts each day instead of one, we could cut the overhead which runs about $50,000/worker in half. Please share this with anyone you wish. This would save the federal government a trillion dollars in the next ten years. Enough to pay for President Obama's healthcare plan.
It also cuts the carbon footprint of the government by 40% to 50% not just 2% or so as called for in the recent executive order.
President Obama signed and executive order on 10/5/09 stating that agencies must for the first time measure, report and reduce their carbon footprint.
This simple plan will help our government and private industry in the following ways:
•Save federal gov a trillion dollars in next 10 years
•Exactly amount needed for universal healthcare
•Reduce white-collar overhead costs by 50%
•Reduce carbon footprint of office space by 50%
•Reduce budget deficits for most state governments
•Reduce our dependence on foreign oil
•Make workers competitive in the global economy
•Improve profits for all businesses and
•Increase tax receipts for state/fed governments
•Businesses can hire more employees & lower prices
OUR GOVERNMENT HAS THE MONEY ALREADY TO PAY FOR UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE.
In his radio address, President Obama said that innovation is needed to get us out of the mess we are in and I came up with with this idea:
Most office space is very expensive yet it sits unused 70% of the time because most white collare work is scheduled
for only one shift per day or only 45 hours out of a 168 hour week. 30% efficiency is completely unacceptable in
today's economic and ecological environment. If white collar work was scheduled for 2 different 8 hour shifts
each day instead of one, we could cut the overhead of $50,000/worker in half saving the Federal Government up to $100 billion per year.
for comments:
whitecollargreenspaceguy@hotmail.comlbright
An $830 BILLION cost over 10 years are good fiscal marks??? WHAT??? And you know that will go up by an X factor of 3 or 7 or 10 because the CBO is always low on their cost projections of a bill.
Our country is broke. Flat out broke. The federal deficit just hit $1.4 TRILLION dollars today. Obama has quadrupled our deficit in less than a year. And now, Democrats want to jame through a minimum TRILLION dollar health care legislation. Do that and we crash and burn.
Remember, the CBO years ago said Medicare would cost $12 billion by 1990. It ended up being $107 billion – eight times the government estimate. So, that $830 BILLION score will be a way lot more.
MUST READ - Congress’ Secret Plan to Pass Obamacare - CONFIRMED. What we have here is a failure to communicate...Congress flips off the American people by not allowing transparency or input
PART 1
http://blog.heritage.org/2009/10/07/congress’-secret-plan-to-pass-obamacare-confirmed/#
Posted October 7th, 2009
Leaders in the House and Senate have a plan to pass President Barack Obama’s sweeping health care plan by Thanksgiving without any significant participation by the American public. CNS News has confirmed the details in our September 22nd titled “Passing a Shell of A Bill: Congress’ Secret Plan to Ram Through Health Care Reform.” Nicholas Ballasy reports “a senior aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) told CNSNews.com that it is ‘likely’ that Reid will use H.R. 1586—a bill passed by the House in March to impose a 90-percent tax on bonuses paid to employees of certain bailed-out financial institutions—as a ‘shell’ for enacting the final version of the Senate’s health care bill, which Reid is responsible for crafting.”
This story confirms the four part scenario that would railroad the bill through the Senate using a very unusual closed door procedure to craft the bill with no input from the American people.
The four stage plan to pass Obamacare has been publicly confirmed and is ready to be implemented. The following is a comprehensive update:
Step One: “The Senate Finance Committee will finish work on the marking up of Senator Max Baucus’ (D-MT) conceptual framework for legislation by this Friday.” Progress on this had been stalled and the bill was not passed by the end of last week. Foxnews.com is reporting that the Congressional Budget Office score of the bill will be released later today and a high score may further stall progress on the Committee’s Vapor Bill. Senate Finance Committee’s progress on passing something out of committee – INCOMPLETE.
Step Two: Next, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will take the final product of the Senate Finance Committee and merge it with the product of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) Committee. CNSnews.com has confirmed that “the actual final text of the legislation will be determined by Reid himself, who will consolidate the legislation approved by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee and the still-unapproved legislation from the Senate Finance Committee. Reid will be able to draft and insert textual language that was not expressly approved by either committee.” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid will write the final version of Obamacare to be considered in the Senate with no input from the American people. This is an extremely complex procedure that will not be done in public, or in the form of a hearing, or a public conference committee, and only Senator Harry Reid, some other Senators chosen by Reid and Obama Administration officials will be allowed to read the bill before the Senate debate starts. Merger of the bills – IN PROGRESS.
Step Three: Senator Reid will then move to proceed to H.R. 1586, a bill to impose a tax on bonuses received by certain TARP recipients. A senior aid to Senate Majority Leader Ried has confirmed that he will move to proceed to Senate Calendar Number 36, H.R. 1586, or another House passed tax measure, so the Senate can avoid the Constitutional mandate that tax bills originate in the House. Proceed to tax shell of a bill – CONFIRMED.
Step Four: This scenario would most likely be implemented after the Massachusetts state legislature gives Governor Deval Patrick the power to appoint a new Senator and that Senator is seated by the Senate. The Senate swore in new Massachusetts Senator Paul Kirk on September 25th. Change Law of Massachusetts to allow for interim Senator – COMPLETE.
MUST READ - Congress’ Secret Plan to Pass Obamacare - CONFIRMED. What we have here is a failure to communicate...Congress flips off the American people by not allowing transparency or input
PART 2
The final step in this plan is for the House to take up Obama care, without amending the legislation, and then sending that bill directly to the President for his signature. Matt Cover at CNSnews.com reports “House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) won’t rule out having the House vote on the Senate health-care bill without making any changes in it, which would allow the bill to go directly to President Barack Obama without having to pass through a House-Senate conference committee and another round of votes in the House and Senate–and a longer period of public scrutiny of what the text of the proposed law actually says.” This scenario is in the process of being implemented and, if successful, it will result in Obamacare being on the President’s desk in time for Thansgiving with minimal participation of the American public.
The San Francisco Examiner published an editorial today that exposed the fact that the American people can’t see the bill. “When then-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama promised not to sign major legislation until it had been posted on the Internet for public reading at least five days, trusting voters took him at his word. Now they know better. Not only is the actual language of what is likely to become the main legislative vehicle for Obama’s signature health care reform not available on the Internet, it hasn’t been given to members of the key Senate committees or the Congressional Budget Office.” The procedure being used, in addition to the exclusion of the American people from the process, should be of grave concern to all who want to participate in democracy and have a say in Congress’ health care reforms that will touch 1/6th of the American economy.
Whitecollargreenspaceguy: I'm sorry, are you comparing those who think health care is a privilege and not a right to those who actively tried to murder an entire ethnicity? You are the definition of a crackpot.
CBO’s First Look at the Baucus Bill —More Medicaid, Higher Taxes, Less Coverage
Posted October 7th, 2009
The Congressional Budget Office preliminary estimate of the Senate Finance Committee’s work is a devastating revelation. The bill is a platform for an enormous jump in federal spending, and yet it still leaves 25 million Americans without health insurance. The gross cost of new federal outlays increased from $738 billion to $829 billion. Meanwhile, the Baucus bill will accelerate, contrary to the president’s rhetoric, the government’s “takeover” of the health care sector of the economy. Nearly half of the individuals who gain insurance will be through Medicaid, a poorly performing program that is insulated from any serious systemic improvement. Expanding Medicaid, a welfare program, is not health care reform.
In its letter to Senator Max Baucus, CBO also makes it crystal clear that its work is not over and actual legislative language is imperative to completing its work. The higher spending is offset with higher tax collections. The Senate Finance Committee mark also depends on budget gimmicks - not paying for fixing the Medicare physician fee schedule nor for reauthorization of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.
In short, the news from CBO is not good news for the American taxpayers.
http://blog.heritage.org/2009/10/07/cbo%e2%80%99s-first-look-at-the-baucus-bill-%e2%80%94more-medicaid-higher-taxes-less-coverage/#atssh-email
Get ready folks...there is $506 BILLION in new taxes in this bill. That's how the tax and spend Democrats plan on making it deficit neutral. Tax increases and cuts to Medicare (of over $400 BILLION).
It is unfortunate that some people put cost above human life - the hold a very low value of human life. They care more about their pocketbooks than America.
The Democrats are smoke and mirrors, folks...that's what it’s all about. And they think the American people are stupid enough to buy it. Only those that blindly follow the Anointed One and march in lockstep with liberal fascism are buying it because anyone with even a modicum of logic isn't. How does a $900 billion pus program save billions of dollars? It doesn't. Back to smoke and mirrors...Democrats plan on paying for this socialistic monstrosity through massive tax increases ($506 billion as listed in the fine print) and massive cuts to Medicare (of well over $400 billion) at the same time as massively expanding enrollment into Medicaid (the health care program for the "poor"). Welcome to Communism...spreading the wealth, confiscation of income through massive taxation, mandated participation...all under the watchful eye of Big Brother.
This "article" is as disingenuous as the analysis itself. Let us not forget that there are over $400 billion in new taxes in this bill and that the taxes will begin next year. Meanwhile, coverage will not begin until 2013. Think about that. We will be taxed for 3 more years than we will receive benefits and it will only "save" us $81 billion. Further, these "savings" are based on assumptions that history tells us will not hold. We are led to believe that the government will actually reduce the costs of healthcare throughout the entire industry all while adding millions of people to the list of insured. Medicare does not reduce fraud and waste (a nice article was out last week describing the vast overpayment of treatments/drugs due to entrenched interests driving up the prices) yet it is our shining example.
Another huge problem with this proposal is that the costs are pushed to the States. Medicaid amounts to 20 - 40% of State budgets right now. This health care bill will double those percentages. If States are running huge deficits now, how exactly does passing billions of dollars in new spending to them save money or help? The end result will be more federal dollars going to the States to cover other budgetary items, which will result in higher federal spending and hence more deficits. The other alternatives are that States significantly raise taxes or drastically cut spending. The problem with the financing of this is that it is all one big shell game where we are moving money that we do not have.
Besides the financial problems that exist, there are serious Constitutional issues with this legislation and the mandates being placed on citizens. There is no grant of authority for the federal government to take the actions proposed in any of the Democrats’ plans right now.
And to those who falsely claim that my pocketbook is more important than healthcare - you are wrong. What is important is not bankrupting society and creating an atmosphere where opportunity is removed or hindered. No one is saying that reform is unnecessary, just that this plan is utter nonsense. There are approximately a dozen Republican proposals that all present significantly better options for covering the uninsured. And I am sure that hundreds of other ideas are floating around society as well.
One last point, President Bush had a yearly surplus when he took office but there was still a huge national deficit (around $4 trillion). If it was wrong for Bush to add another $4-5 trillion to the deficit, why is it not wrong for Obama to add another $8-10 trillion? I am no supporter of Bush but please get the facts straight before calling out others for spreading falsehoods.
Post a Comment