CBO Forecasts Deficit Growth Despite Health Reform Law
On Wednesday, Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Elmendorf predicted that the federal deficit will continue to grow in coming decades despite the cost-containment provisions of the new health reform law. Presenting CBO's projections to the bipartisan White House Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, Elmendorf said the law made a "dent" in overall health care spending, but it "did not substantially diminish the challenge" of cutting costs.
- "CBO Tells Obama Deficit Panel That Forecast Remains Bleak" (Montgomery, Washington Post, 7/1).
- "Deficit Panel Stresses Spending Cuts" (McKinnon, Wall Street Journal, 7/1).