From the National Taxpayer Union:
Last week the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released a cost estimate for H.R. 6079, the Repeal of Obamacare Act, introduced by Representative Eric Cantor (with 162 cosponsors). The bill is the House’s latest legislative attempt to undo the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which passed in 2010. A great deal of media attention has been focused on the impact that repeal would have on the deficit. See, for example, this headline, “Nonpartisan budget office says Obama’s health law still reduces deficit, fewer will be covered” or, “CBO: Health care repeal increases budget deficit.” On that point, CBO concludes that, if enacted, the direct spending and tax provisions repealed through H.R. 6079 would lead to “a net increase in federal budget deficits of $109 billion over the 2013 – 2022 period.”
But CBO’s estimate makes for a misguided story angle because it de-emphasizes the burdens imposed by PPACA through its skyrocketing price tag and its array of taxes and “tax-penalties.” It also overlooks the tenuous nature of a significant portion of the spending reductions included in the health care overhaul. Moreover, that deficit impact projection excludes discretionary spending changes that could occur under repeal. NTU Foundation’s BillTally project can shed more light on the fiscal details of this legislation. According to data in the report on H.R. 6079 and additional information provided in a previous CBO analysis, repealing the health care package could reduce outlays by $926 billion over ten years, through a combination of direct spending and discretionary changes.
Read more.