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THE LETTER THAT SCARED THE BLUE DOGS.
Earlier today, I mentioned a letter sent by stakeholder groups like the AFL-CIO, AARP, the Chamber of Commerce, Pharma, and a few other organizations calling for the Budget Committees to set aside pay-go rules on health reform. That's a lot of firepower for one piece of paper. The Blue Dogs are, even as we speak, fashioning a response.
The letter argues that "while the cost savings from improving the efficiency and quality of health care will be significant, many of the anticipated savings will be realized in the long term, and may thus not be evident in a ten year budget window. Moreover, CBO’s current scoring conventions do not recognize many of the savings to be achieved by a restructuring of the health care system." As such, "requiring spending or revenue offsets for the entire cost of health reform within a ten year budget window, as required under a traditional pay-as-you-go rule, will significantly reduce the likelihood of enacting legislation to achieve essential reforms for long-term savings."
"We therefore request that the committee develop a more flexible approach to pay-as-you-go for health care reform."
In other words, the undersigned organizations -- and there are a lot of them -- fear that a health reform proposal built in accordance with pay-go rules will sacrifice the upfront investments that will lead to long-term savings. Or so they say. Undoubtedly, they also fear a legislative process conducted in accordance with pay-go rules will require savings, and savings will come from their profits and prioities. A world in which you really need to save money is a world in which you're more likely to cut reimbursements for pharmaceuticals, which PhRMA fears, or shortchanges subsidies for low-income workers, which SEIU fears.
Anyway, full letter and list of signatories after the fold.
March 9, 2009
The Honorable Kent Conrad The Honorable Judd Gregg
Chairman Ranking Minority Member
Senate Committee on the Budget Senate Committee on the Budget
624 Dirksen Senate Office Building 624 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510 Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable John M. Spratt, Jr. The Honorable Paul Ryan
Chairman Ranking Minority Member
House Committee on the Budget House Committee on the Budget
207 Cannon House Office Building 207 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515 Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Senator Conrad, Senator Gregg, Representative Spratt and Representative Ryan:
We are writing to express our strong support for including in the budget resolution the
resources needed to enact comprehensive health reform legislation. In our view, such
legislation should include effective provisions to reduce costs by improving the quality
and efficiency of health care and help ensure coverage for every American.
Legislation of this kind will reduce the rate of growth of both federal and private health
care expenditures, and will thus improve the fiscal health of the nation. While the cost
savings from improving the efficiency and quality of health care will be significant, many
of the anticipated savings will be realized in the long term, and may thus not be evident in
a ten year budget window. Moreover, CBO’s current scoring conventions do not
recognize many of the savings to be achieved by a restructuring of the health care system.
We believe, therefore, that it would be reasonable to develop an approach for health care
reform that reflects both the near-term exigencies and long-term savings of such
extraordinary legislation. Requiring spending or revenue offsets for the entire cost of
health reform within a ten year budget window, as required under a traditional pay-asyou-
go rule, will significantly reduce the likelihood of enacting legislation to achieve
essential reforms for long-term savings.
We therefore request that the committee develop a more flexible approach to pay-as-yougo
for health care reform that reaffirms the importance of offsets but accommodates the
need for significant short-term expenditures that will help set the health system on a path
toward significant long-term savings and improvement in the long-run fiscal future of our
country.
We commend you for your strong support of health reform, and look forward to working
with you on this important national priority.
AARP
AdvaMed
Aetna
AFL-CIO
America’s Health Insurance Plans
American Benefits Council
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
American College of Physicians
American College of Surgeons
American Diabetes Association
American Hospital Association
American Medical Assocation
American Osteopathic Association
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
Business Roundtable
Catholic Health Association of the United States
Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities – Health Task Force
Families USA
Federation of American Hospitals
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
National Association of Children’s Hospitals
National Association of Community Health Centers
National Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems
National Federation of Independent Business
National Medical Association
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Retail Federation
PhRMA
SEIU
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
COMMENTS (1)
Wow. Just... wow. That's a really astounding list of signatories.
I want to maintain my skepticism about whether "this time really is different" on health care reform, but it's hard in the face of things like this. I mean, really, is there much to gain this time from lawmakers being mulish? Other than crazed ideology?
Posted by: Roq | March 13, 2009 2:22 PM