OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Accounting Gimmicks In Proposed Health Care

Floor Speech

Date: Oct. 7, 2009
Location: Washington D.C.
Issues: Health and Health Care

Mr. CASSIDY. Mr. Speaker, instead of passing health care reform that lowers costs, Democrats are positioned to pass a bill that hides costs by passing them on to State taxpayers. A frightening footnote in the Congressional Budget Office report on the Senate Financial Committee bill reveals a $37 billion Medicaid mandate on State governments. Unlike the Federal Government, States can't just print money.

This $37 billion mandate will force States across the Nation to choose between deep cuts to programs or steep tax hikes. In Louisiana alone, it's $612 million over 5 years. That's $612 million less for roads, for higher education, for secondary education, for economic development.

In addition to driving States into bankruptcy, this unfunded mandate deliberately hides the bill's true cost. Whether from Federal taxes or State taxes, the American people will have to absorb this.

If the bill actually lowered costs, its author would not have to hide behind accounting gimmicks to sell the bill.


Source
arrow_upward