CBO states that Health Care Reform will Reduce the Deficit; or Will It?

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its preliminary findings on the Health Care Reform measure now before Congress. The CBO stated that health care reform would reduce the deficit by $138 billion over the next ten years and eventually would reduce $1.2 trillion dollars from the deficit in the preceding decade.

Before anyone gets euphoric over this report by the CBO, the analysis was studied on the current reform package and hasn’t analyzed the bill after the reconciliation process. The cost savings issued by the CBO is only an assumption that Congress will enact $500 billion dollars savings from Medicare, and will raise enough taxes from various sources that includes “Cadillac Plans” the hallmark of most union benefit packages and also taxing people who receive coverage through their employers.

All these assumptions have to materialize before reductions can be made to the federal deficit. The question that has to be asked that both sides have never answered is where will the cuts in Medicare be made, and will the savings then be spent in the same health care reform measure? Currently the presidents Medicare Actuary has stated that the president’s health care package has the savings from Medicare to be spent right back into the health care reform package.

Currently Medicare is broke and any changes that will affect millions need to be asked now! How does the current health care reform measure strengthen Medicare? How will the states fund Medicaid, as of right now numerous states are virtually bankrupt and are implementing budget cuts to various programs?

Cutting savings from Medicare is far difficult challenge that Congress will have to make to ensure that health care reform will be paid for. Will seniors who are the largest voting bloc go along with any reduction in Medicare, if $500 billion dollars in savings could be found, why hasn’t it been done already?

The second question that has not been addressed who and where will the taxes come from to pay for health care reform? Numerous assumptions have been made by both sides, but in the end it can’t be that we have to do something with health care! Too often all I hear is that we have to do something, but the best intentions have been based on we have to do something and the American people are the ones left paying for the follies of great intentions!

Will unions primarily the recipients of “Cadillac Plans” go along with having their taxes raised? Taxes have always been the most contentious issue facing any Congress, will future members of Congress vote to raise taxes especially during election years, or will they pass the pain to future generations to pay for their mistakes, which have been done too often in the past?

Before passage all these questions must be asked, if not then we will forever be saddled with one more unfunded entitlement program that will threaten the national security of this country and cause economic calamity to America.