Research Briefing

First Vote On Obama’s Government-Run Health Care Plan Would Have Added $245 Billion To Deficit, Had It Not Failed

RNC CHAIRMAN MICHAEL STEELE: “No one should be surprised that the first vote on health care reform that Harry Reid brought to the floor adds nearly $250 billion to our already skyrocketing national deficit. But the real surprise is that despite President Obama’s claim that we’re closer than ever before to passing health care reform, the first Senate floor vote was a complete failure.  And it was complete failure because Some Democrat Senators realize that the American people will not support a massive government run health care experiment written behind closed doors that adds to the deficit and does nothing to lower American families’ health care costs.”

TODAY, REID LOST CRUCIAL VOTE ON OBAMA’S HEALTH CARE EXPERIMENT, WHICH WOULD ADD $245 BILLION TO THE DEFICIT

On First Major Vote For Obama’s Health Care Experiment, 12 Senate Dems Join Republicans In Defeating “Doc Fix” Bill. (S. 1776, Cloture Vote, Failed 47-53; R: 0-40, D: 46-12, I: 1-1, 10/21/00)

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-NV) “Doc Fix” Bill Seen As First Test For Obama’s Health Care Experiment. “Passing the ‘doc fix’ in the Senate is turning out to be a lot like passing a broader health care overhaul. Both of the politically intertwined bills have left Senate Democrats divided and lacking the 60 votes required to pass a measure. They need Republicans but are having trouble getting them. … [A] Senate vote later this week on limiting debate on the ‘doc fix’ could turn out to be something of a test vote for the health care overhaul.” (Drew Armstrong, “Overhaul’s Troubles Echo In ‘Doc Fix,’” CQ Today, 10/20/09)

Obama Pledged Government-Run Health Care Would Be Deficit-Neutral. “I will not sign it if it adds one dime to the deficit, now or in the future, period.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks To A Joint Session Of Congress On Health Care, Washington, DC, 9/9/09)

And Bill Was Dems’ Way Of Hiding $245 Billion In Costs To Pretend Their Health Care Experiment Was Deficit-Neutral. “The Senate Finance Committee's health-reform bill is fully paid for, according to the Congressional Budget Office; in fact, the CBO says, it would save $81 billion in the first 10 years. The House version of health reform, by contrast, would add $239 billion to the deficit over that period. So the Senate bill is more fiscally responsible, right? Not exactly. The cost difference stems from the fact that the House measure is honest enough to include the full 10-year cost of the so-called ‘doc fix’ -- $245 billion to reverse scheduled cuts in Medicare payments to physicians -- although not fiscally responsible enough to pay for it. The Senate just patches the problem for one year and pretends that doctors take a 25 percent cut in reimbursements the following year and then stay at that low level forever. No one believes that will happen, so the money is going to have to be scrounged up later or else add more to the deficit.” (Editorial, “A Shell Game For Disguising Health Reform Costs,” The Washington Post, 10/10/09)

WHILE REID TRIED TO BLAME DOCTORS, SOME SENATE DEMS WEREN’T WILLING TO RAISE DEFICIT BY HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS

Reid Attempts To Blames AMA For Fooling Him Into Thinking Republicans Would Support Bill. “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has told colleagues that he was given bad information by the American Medical Association (AMA), which will result in a significant setback to Democrats’ healthcare reform strategy… Reid brought the $247 billion bill to the Senate floor this week as part of a deal to secure the support of doctors groups such as the AMA for passage of a separate, broader healthcare reform bill later this year. But the strategy has backfired.” (Alexander Bolton, “Reid Tells Colleagues He Was Led Astray By The AMA On 'Doc Fix',” The Hill, 10/21/09)

But 5 Senate Dems Opposing “Doc Fix” Said They Would Not Raise Deficit. “Sens. Kent Conrad (N.D.), Evan Bayh (Ind.), Russ Feingold (Wis.), Tom Carper (Del.) and Claire McCaskill (Mo.) on Tuesday voiced opposition to separate legislation that would freeze scheduled cuts in Medicare payments to doctors for the next 10 years. … [T]he five Democrats are insisting that the legislation, which costs $247 billion, be offset with spending cuts or tax increases.” (Alexander Bolton, “Dem Thumbs Down To Reid Doctors Deal,” The Hill, 10/20/09)

• Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) Says “Doc Fix” Must Be Paid For. “I think it is a mistake to have 10 years unpaid for… I am all for fixing the unrealistic cuts to doctors who serve Medicare patients but I am entirely in favor of paying for it.” (Carrie Budoff Brown, “Bayh: ‘No’ On Doc Fix Unless Paid For,” Politico’s “Live Pulse” Blog, 10/14/09)
• Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) Says He “Couldn't Vote For Something That Is Going To Raise The Deficit By $245 Billion.” “’It needs to be done but I couldn't vote for something that is going to raise the deficit by $245 billion, not at a time when we are already hemorrhaging red ink,’ Bayh said. ‘I am for the fix but I don't think we should blow the roof off the deficit -- not at a time when we are already running record deficits.’” (Carrie Budoff Brown, “Bayh: ‘No’ On Doc Fix Unless Paid For,” Politico’s “Live Pulse” Blog, 10/14/09)

But Sen. Blanche Lincoln Didn’t Blink At Adding Hundreds Of Billions To The Deficit. (S. 1776, Cloture Vote, Failed 47-53; R: 0-40, D: 46-12, I: 1-1, Blanche Lincoln Casting A “Yea” Vote, 10/21/00)