Obamanopoly

*Obamacare spends $1.3 trillionSource: CBO Cost Estimate (letter to Pelosi), 3.20.10; CBO Cost Estimate (letter to Lewis), 5.11.10 over the first 10 years ($2.6 trillionSource: Senate Budget Committee, Minority, 3.18.10 & 3.21.10 if you count the first 10 years it is fully operational), and pays for it by raising taxes, cutting Medicare, robbing from a newly created Ponzi scheme, and omitting costs that should be part of the total bill. The following 'Pay-Fors' are not a comprehensive list (and do not include 'Pay-Offs'), but exemplify the most egregious budgetary gimmicks contained in Obamacare.

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Medicare

Obamacare cuts more than $500 billion from Medicare to help pay for costly new health insurance subsidies. | SourceCBO Cost Estimate (letter to Pelosi), 3.20.10 |

Doc Fix

Obamacare effectively includes a 20% reduction in Medicare physician payments (i.e., it lacks a "doc fix"). | Background A "doc fix" bill has been enacted by Congress every year beginning in 2003, to avert the automatic cuts scheduled under current law. If not paid appropriately, doctors may stop taking Medicare patients as has been the case with Medicaid. | SourceCBO Budget Factsheet, 4.30.10 |

Surtaxes

Obamacare imposes a new 0.9% payroll surtax and 3.8% investment income surtax. | BackgroundIndividuals with incomes over $200k and families with incomes over $250k (unindexed) are subject to an additional 0.9% tax on earnings and an additional 3.8% tax on investment income above $200k/$250k. | Source JCT Revenue Estimate (JCX-17-10), 3.20.10 |

CLASS Act

Obamacare includes the CLASS Act, a new, government-run long-term care program which generates $70 billion in temporary "savings" during the 10 year budget window (a classic Washington budget gimmick). | Source CBO Cost Estimate (letter to Pelosi), 3.20.10 |

Taxes

Obamacare levies new taxes on: medical device makers (a 2.3% excise tax); brand-name drug manufacturers ($27 billion in "fees"); and health insurance providers ($60.1 billion in "fees"). | Source JCT Revenue Estimate (JCX-17-10), 3.20.10 |

Admin

Obamacare did not include administrative costs. It takes a lot of money to fund 159 new bureaucracies, programs, and regulatory systems!
| BackgroundWhen they enacted Obamacare, Congressional leaders didn't reveal how much the legislation would cost to administer. A month after enactment, taxpayers got the bad news: $115 billion. | Source CBO Cost Estimate (letter to Lewis), 5.11.10 |