Health Care Plan Leaves Huge Hole In the Budget

In an effort to fund their massive health care plan, members of Congress are scrambling to find revenue. After searching under their car seats and sofa cushions for extra change, they have basically admitted that the well is simply dry.

And that proposal to tax employer-provided health care benefits? It’s just not picking up enough support to push through. Democrats, in particular, are balking. It is, after all, the run-up to the 2010 elections – and no one wants to raise taxes on the run-up to the elections, especially when 36 seats are up for grabs in the Senate alone.

Wait. I meant that no one wants to raise taxes on the middle class on the run-up to the elections.

The rich? That’s a different story. Sen. Kent Conrad (D-ND) has now advised that members of the Senate are considering taxing employer-provided health care benefits but exempting benefits under $25,000. That would mean that only those with the most expensive health care plans, sometimes called “Cadillac” plans (though with GM in bankruptcy, I think we should start calling them “Mercedes” plans – or even “Hyundai” plans), would pay taxes on benefits. That might *might* pass muster in Congress. It just won’t make people with those health care benefits happy.

But at least it will solve the health care budget problems.

Oh wait… it actually won’t solve the health care budget programs. According to Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), the hole in the budget after making other accommodations is a whopping $320 billion. Taxing pricey health care benefits would only put a mere $90 billion dent in that number over 10 years. That leaves nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars still left – just for health care. Not for education. Not for the military. Not for infrastructure improvements.

And since I’m fairly certain that we’ve become immune to how big these budget numbers are, I’m going to write them out.

The hole in the budget for health care is $320,000,000,000. After raising taxes on health care benefits, it’s still $230,000,000,000.

All of those zeros are worrying: they have to come from somewhere.

And where do you think they’re coming from? Hmm…