Posted on 03/04/2012 10:10:29 AM PST by tobyhill
Cost estimates for a key portion of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul law have ballooned by $111 billion from last year’s budget, and a senior Republican lawmaker today demanded an explanation.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., wants to know by Monday why the estimated cost of helping millions of middle-class Americans buy health insurance has jumped by about 30 percent for an eight-year period, from 2014-2021.
Administration officials say the explanation lies in budget technicalities and that there are no significant changes in the program that would raise concerns.
Cost estimates for new government programs can be wide off the mark. For example, the actual cost of President George W. Bush’s Medicare prescription drug benefit came in lower than estimated, so it wasn’t as big a drag on federal finances as initially forecast.
Cost overruns for the health care overhaul could create new political problems for Obama by undermining the law’s promise to reduce federal deficits.
(Excerpt) Read more at bostonherald.com ...
The government-run Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Program [PCIP], which is already up and running, is costing MORE than DOUBLE per person than budgeted ...
BUDGETED $13K per person, COSTING $29K+ per person - so that ONLY 1/2 the number of people budgeted can be accommodated ...
Yeah, and only something like 50,000 people have even bothered to sign up for it so far. Weren’t we told there were several million people who needed this? Just add it to the list of lies told by Zero.
Mrs. Prince of Space
Bump
Imagine how expensive it will be to pay for healthy people, like Ms. Fluke and her $3000 perscriptions, instead of concentrating on sick people.
People like her don’t stay healthy long.
Not to divert the thread too much, but 5 year treasuries are paying around 1% and 10 year treasuries are under 2%, yet real inflation is somewhere between 2%-8%. How long can we expect to sell our debt at a rate that locks in somewhere between 7% to 1% loss every year? Would you buy an investment that guaranteed you a loss every year?
Here is how it relates to the thread - how can we continue to spend $1.5 trillion more each year than we collect in taxes unless we borrow money, and how can we continue to borrow money when we guarantee our investors a loss?
Yes, the President and the hard left want to raise taxes... They want to raise them a lot but only talk about modest increases right now. In France the left is pushing for a 75% top rate. We are heading that way if we don’t make changes soon. Something’s gotta give, and ultimately if spending isn’t brought under control, what will give are interest rates, plunging the economy back into recession.
The media is ignorant, alright (see tagline).
But, even if they could figure it out, they wouldn't report it. Might reflect badly on their boy, Barack, y'know.
The press is no longer concerned with who, what, when, where and why. They're now in Propaganda & Political Protection business.
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