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Jamie Dupree

Section 2002

By
Jamie Dupree
@ July 27, 2009 12:00 AM
Permalink | Comments (10) | TrackBacks (0)
While I was interviewing the lead negotiator for the Blue Dogs last Friday, he told a story of how his team was still finding odd things in the health care reform bill backed by Democratic leaders.

"You know we went through this with the stimulus bill, with all of the things that people learned about after they voted," said Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR).

"We just need to slow down and get it right."

Ross pointed us to Section 2002 of the health care bill, "Public Health Investment Fund."

It's pretty straightforward, establishing a new fund to help pay for public health needs at community health centers, the National Health Service Corps program and more.

But then, there is some language that makes people on Capitol Hill stop, shake their head, and re-read what they just read.

"Amounts appropriated under this section, and outlays flowing from such appropriations, shall not be taken into account for purposes of any budget enforcement procedures including allocations under section 302(a) and (b) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act and budget resolutions for fiscal years during which appropriations are made from the Fund," it says under "Budgetary Implications."

Did that just say the money spent under this section shouldn't be counted?

"It's worded in a way to where (the money) is not included when the Congressional Budget Office scores the bill," said Ross, who argues that a delay until after Labor Day would be a good idea.

"Members need a chance to read the bill that they're voting on, to catch more of these things like Section 2002 of the bill," he added.

"That's what the American people are tired of."

One thing I quickly checked when I looked at the health care bill language again was to see if that type of budget language was used anywhere else.

Yes, on page 76, there was another example of where the costs of a certain program would not be "counted" for this bill.

In this case, it was for Section 164, "Reinsurance Program For Retirees," a new "temporary reinsurance program" that's designed to "provide reimbursement to assist participating employment-based plans with the cost of providing health benefits to retirees and to eligible spouses, surviving spouses and dependents of such retirees."

Does that sort of sound to you like the insurance industry would be getting money from the feds to pay out claims for retirees?

It is not an open-ended fund though, as on page 70, it says "the total of all such amounts requested shall not exceed" $10 billion.

At least the taxpayers got that going for them, eh?

Remember, if you want to leaf through the House bill yourself, here is your link http://bit.ly/nSL2A

You never know what you might learn, or what you might find in there.



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What others are saying

  • More Diversionary Tactics and Such
    I have to agree with sailcrew and Amy as well, it's inane to change the subject and blame past Presidents of this tactic. It doesn't mean it right. Besides, I believe Reagan had Democratic congress to work with. You know, the ones that actually write the checks and spend the money; much like the one that's doing it today. Obama is only guilty of promoting this as his bad idea.
  • Diversionary Tactics
    I have to agree with "Amy" - "child logic" The past rulers may have fudged the numbers in favor of this or that, but while it is happening, and we're awake, this is NOT going un-noticed by countless new observers.
  • more powerful corporations=less liberty
    The more the money power elite run things the less freedom the little guy has and that's the way we like it.
  • More Government = Less Freedom
    What all you people need to remember is that no matter what the particular situation is, as government grows larger your freedoms shrink. This has been true since the beginning of time, and always will be.
  • Money not counted in the Budget, page 76
    The way I see it, this opens preferential treatment. If you like someone/entity you can approve service. If you do not like someone/entity you can deny service.In either case it just does not exist, interesting.
  • child logic
    Don't excuse bad behavior with previous bad behavior - We can go back and criticize every past Prez of each party and get nowhere and it's just a tactic to change the subject.
  • Section 2002
    So if they don't count it, it's as if it never really happened.

    "In this way every prediction made by the Party could be shown by documentary evidence to have been correct; nor was any item of news, or any expression of opinion, which conflicted with the needs of the moment, ever allowed to remain on record." -- George Orwell, 1984
  • Conservative Biased??
    Ilove the way liberals can seem to get over Bush. Not counting things in budgets have been going on thru many Presidents, Republican and Dem. The coverage come from the number of zeros that are involve. Obviously you are one of the one that Obama's white house psychologist said could not comprehend a figure as large as a trillion. When you are talking in trillions, it really needs to be scrutinized.
  • conservative biased media reads when it wants to
    So Jacob, because prior parties did it makes it right? I'm sure your parents are sooooo happy how they raised you. If you had a friend who jumped off a bridge (and survived), its okay for you to do the same? People like you need to be ignored.
  • conservative biased media reads when it wants to
    Jammy I love the idea of just not "counting" things in the budget Bush and Reagan did it all the time, especially with defense spending to their friends like Haliburton and KBR etc. no one can trace. Please direct me to the coverage you did of that where you read every page and parsed it for us in those Reagan and W. Bush budgets, I can't seem to find that coverage. LOL
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