SB 3653: Cost Cutting or Politics as Usual?

In his August 9, 2010 Huffington Post blog, Larry McNeely argues that recently proposed Senate Bill 3653, which would strip the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) of the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), has dire fiscal consequences for the nation’s rising health care costs.

The IPAB, as authorized by ACA, “would consist of physicians and medical experts who make recommendations on how to rein in the rising costs that are bankrupting Medicare and Medicaid. Congress does not have to accept the recommendations, but if they do not they must offer an alternative that saves just as much taxpayer money. Otherwise, the original IPAB recommendations go into effect.” He points out that while The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates IPAB would reduce the deficit by $15 billion in the next decade, they also paint a picture of fiscal calamity if the IPAB and other cost containment strategies are repealed.

Click here to read McNeely’s blog
Click here to read the CBO’s Long Term Budget Outlook
Click here to read the CBO’s ACA Cost Estimate