House Passes Health Care Reform

Last night the House of Representatives passed President Obama’s Health Care Reform Bill with a 219-212 vote; no Republican voted for the bill. After the president signs the broader legislation it moves over to the Senate to begin work on the House-passed legislation.

The real question to me is how will this be paid for, and will the costs that are included in this health reform package materialize as everyone expects? The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office stated last week this reform measure would reduce the deficit, but this is before the reconciliation process and is only based on assumptions.

Congress will have cut a half trillion dollars from Medicare, and raise the necessary taxes to pay for Health Care Reform. The concern I have is when has Congress ever been able to reduce spending from one of America’s most cherished entitlement programs! Right now Medicare is broke, and will these projected savings be spent right back in the health reform bill as the president’s own Medicare actuary stated.

The other aspect is raising enough revenue from increase in taxes to go along with the savings in Medicare for this health reform measure to meet its goal. The hardest part of any Congress is to raise taxes especially in an election year and to reduce Medicare without pushing the pain off until after the election.

Numerous assumptions are predicated on this I just think future Congresses will have the stomach to reduce Medicare and raise the necessary taxes to pay for Health care reform. If I am right then all we have done is saddled America with one more unfunded entitlement program that will increase the national debt substantially. If I am wrong then the president would have reduced the deficit and brought monumental change to bringing health care to all Americans.

Time will tell if I am right or wrong!