Sometimes even the government cannot spend money that it does not have. That’s the simple truth behind the new study by Charles Blahous, a public trustee for Medicare and Social Security. Blahous finds that the Affordable Care Act is expected to increase the federal deficit by at least $346 billion between now and 2021, and the price tag might be as high as $527 billion. That’s a far cry from … [Read more...] about Joe Antos: No, Obamacare really doesn’t add up
Archives for April 2012
ObamaCare Is the Embodiment of Fiscal Disaster
The American people figured out very early in the health reform debate that you can’t create a new entitlement that finances health insurance for 30 million people and still claim the scheme will magically reduce the federal budget deficit. But the White House and Democratic leaders in Congress kept insisting we were wrong – that, like the subjects in “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” we were just … [Read more...] about ObamaCare Is the Embodiment of Fiscal Disaster
When would it ever stop?
After three days of arguments and 136 amicus briefs filed with the Supreme Court, the key question comes down to this: Can the Congress go beyond its power to tax us and actually compel us to spend our own personal money on a private product, under penalty of federal law? The government argued that this is a natural extension its ability to regulate commerce since we will all need health care at … [Read more...] about When would it ever stop?
Washington Post Poll: More Americans expect Supreme Court’s health-care decision to be political
More Americans think Supreme Court justices will be acting mainly on their partisan political views than on a neutral reading of the law when they decide the constitutionality of President Obama’s health-care law, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. Half of the public expects the justices to rule mainly based on their “partisan political views,” while fewer, 40 percent, expect … [Read more...] about Washington Post Poll: More Americans expect Supreme Court’s health-care decision to be political
Tom Miller: Looking for better health in all the wrong places: The road to “equality” hits a dead end
I was initially assigned the working title, "Pursuing Equality in Health Care for the Elderly Is Futile." I prefer to think of that particular dead end of health policy as one of listening to the wrong music for too long. Hence, this article reprises and revises the title song of the early 1980s movie,Urban Cowboy, but with Johnny Lee's original lyrics adapted as "Looking for better health [rather … [Read more...] about Tom Miller: Looking for better health in all the wrong places: The road to “equality” hits a dead end
Mercatus Center: The Fiscal Consequences of the Affordable Care Act
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) signed into law by President Obama in 2010 will significantly worsen the federal government’s fiscal position relative to previous law. Supporters argued that this comprehensive health care reform would deliver a much-needed correction to the government’s unsustainable fiscal outlook and would benefit the country’s overall fiscal situation. … [Read more...] about Mercatus Center: The Fiscal Consequences of the Affordable Care Act
Holder Repeats Veiled Threat to Court
In a letter released on Thursday, Attorney General Eric Holder acknowledged that the judicial branch indisputably has the power to determine the constitutionality of laws passed by Congress. But he used the letter to reiterate President Obama’s warning to the Supreme Court to uphold the health-care law. Holder’s letter, demanded by a three-judge panel on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, is … [Read more...] about Holder Repeats Veiled Threat to Court
Avik Roy: The Medicaid Mess: How Obamacare Makes It Worse
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) is designed to extend health-insurance coverage to tens of millions of uninsured Americans. Rarely is it mentioned, however, that Medicaid, the government-run health-insurance program for the poor, will provide more than half of that new coverage under the law. The PPACA assigns Medicaid this central role, despite long-standing concerns about … [Read more...] about Avik Roy: The Medicaid Mess: How Obamacare Makes It Worse