SPOTLIGHT: COSTLY MEASURE
A CMS study released on Friday found that the Senate health care reform
bill would not reduce national health care costs but would expand
coverage to 33 million U.S. residents who are currently uninsured. The
study found that under the bill, total health spending in the U.S. would
reach $35.5 trillion over 10 years, 0.7% more than projected under
current law. In addition, the report projected that total health
expenditures would increase by $234 billion between 2010 and 2019 under
the bill. The boost in spending would result primarily because of the
increased use of health services by the newly insured, according to the
report. The bill would ensure that 93% of citizens and legal residents
have health insurance coverage, but the added demand for services at
first could be difficult to meet with current resources, the report
said. Finally the report found that proposed Medicare cuts in the bill
would threaten the profitability of 20% of U.S. hospitals and nursing
homes.
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