Healthcare: Examining the Senate Bill

Here's a nice breakdown on the bill crafted behind closed doors by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and revealed to the public less than 48 hours before the initial vote:

Busts the Federal Budget: "According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the amended Reid plan would reduce the federal budget deficit by $132 billion over the period 2010 to 2019, but that is a mirage. The CBO can only score what the Senate tells them they will do, not what everyone knows they actually will do. For example, the Senate bill cuts Medicare fees for doctors by 20% starting in 2011. Nobody believes these cuts will be allowed to happen. By changing just that provision, Obamacare ends up adding $196 billion to the deficit in the first 10 years and $765 billion in the second decade." (This is important: Congress has never, when given the opportunity, cut Medicare payments to doctors. Politically, it's a no-brainer. If you cut payments, fewer doctors will accept Medicare. Fewer doctors means less access to care. What politician in his / her right mind is going to do that? So, it's unlikely that the cuts will happen, meaning the projected savings are also unlikely to happen.)

Busts State Budgets: "According to The Fiscal Survey of States, 31 states cut higher education and 26 states cut K-12 education in 2009. This is because Medicaid and education are almost always any states two highest budget items, and states cannot touch the entitlement to Medicaid. Obamacare only increases state Medicaid obligations thus further bankrupting states. This is why Sen. Nelson demanded a permanent Medicaid bailout for Nebraska in exchange for his vote. Other states like Hawaii, Vermont, and Massachusetts also won key federal bailouts for their health programs. Who are the losers? All the other that are forced to pick up the $1 billion tab." (Congress has become really bad about this type of thing: mandating a program for the states when the states are already having trouble making budgetary ends meet. That's why some governors protested the stimulus provision that expanded unemployment insurance. The states were already having trouble meeting unemployment obligations, then the federal government mandates a permanent expansion of the program but only provided funds for two years. After that the states get stuck with the additional costs associated with the expanded program, forcing them to cut other areas of spending or raise taxes.)

Increases Health Care Costs: "Throughout the health care debate, President Obama promised reform that would 'bend the cost curve down' on health care spending. But according to the President's own the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMMS) the Senate does exactly the opposite, actually driving health care costs up by adding $234 billion to national health expenditures." (Private insurance premiums will go up as well so that insurance companies have the cash reserves to pay for the mandates that will be forced on them in 2014).

Endangers Americans Quality of Care: "President Obama used to promise that 'If you like your health care plan, you can keep your health care plan.' But as the CBO confirmed this month 10 million Americans will be forced out of their current health insurance plan should Obamacare become law. Even worse, CMMS has reported that Obamacare's $493 billion in Medicare cuts could force as many as one-in-five health care providers into insolvency thus forcing them out of the Medicare program." (This is simple, really. You can't expand coverage and keep costs down without cutting something else-like services, or available plans, or quality.)

Forces Americans to Pay for Abortions: "Despite the inclusion of the Nelson amendment, when the federal government's role over the financing and delivery of health care grows, as it does under this bill, a requirement to segregate premiums that cover abortion services would be merely cosmetic in practice."

$400 Billion in New Taxes: "From taxes on employment to taxes on tanning beds, Obamacare is funded with over $400 billion in new taxes at a time of double digit unemployment, including $29 billion in taxes on 19 million Americans who still will not receive any health insurance." (I fear this is only the beginning of the taxation that will be required to fund this monstrosity. Sixteen new taxes in this bill, last I saw. How many more are coming?)

A 'Starter Home' for Government Run Health Care: "While technically not a public option, this scheme will have the same results. By giving unprecedented power and authority to the Director of Office of Personal Management, the multi-state plans created in the bill will simply become the government plan. Single payer advocate Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) is even calling the bill a "starter home" for further reform." (Make no mistake about it, folks, the end goal is to eliminate the private sector from health care, incrementally if necessary.)

http://blog.heritage.org/2009/12/21/morning-bell-the-health-care-fight-has-just-begun/