"W.H. makes economic case for reform"

Carrie Budoff Brown (Politico):

Turning its attention to the economic case for health care reform, the White House released a report Monday that seeks to explain a classic Washington riddle: How can President Barack Obama claim he will save money by spending more than $1 trillion to fix health care?

The report identifies two components of “successful” reform: slowing the growth rate of health care spending and expanding coverage to the uninsured.

The cost of covering the uninsured accounts for much of more than $1 trillion pricetag. And although it would require money upfront, the longer-term benefits “exceed the costs of providing the insurance,” the report argues, citing improved health outcomes, an increased labor supply and a reduction in workers who find themselves locked in their jobs because they need their insurance.

But expanded coverage must be coupled with measures to contain costs, which could be large and would accrue over time, easing the strain that rising health care premiums now place on governments and families, the report says.

“We find that the sum of these economic benefits could be very large if reform genuinely brings about a substantial reduction in the growth rate of real health care costs and expands coverage,” the report states. “Because such a substantial reduction will require hard choices and the cooperation of policymakers, providers, insurers, and the public, success is not guaranteed. But, the economic benefits of achieving successful reform would be very large.”

The report comes as the White House ratchets up its public advocacy for a health care reform bill, which congressional Democratic leaders have promised to deliver by August.

Obama meets Tuesday afternoon with Democratic members of the two Senate committees writing health care bills - a sitdown that follows news stories in recent days detailing the diverging interests of the Finance and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committees.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican on the Finance Committee, posted a note on his Twitter account late Monday suggesting the president wanted to bridge the divide.

Using his usual Twitter shorthand, Grassley wrote: "The prez is meetin w Finance and Help Demo bc doesn't appear they on same page Finance working biparty HELP more partisan. Where Prez land?"

Translation: The president is meeting with Finance and HELP committee Democrats because they do not appear to be on the same page. Finance is working on a bipartisan basis; HELP is more partisan. Where will the president end up?

A White House spokesman said the meeting was not prompted by the spate of news stories.
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On Tuesday morning, White House economist Christina D. Romer will promote the report during an event Tuesday with Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and other key White House figures, including budget director Peter Orszag, health reform director Nancy-Ann DeParle, and National Economic Council director Larry Summers.

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) issued a statement Monday saying the report does not allay concerns about the Democratic plan.

“This report is nothing more than smoke and mirrors,” Boehner said. “Everyone agrees that reducing the cost of health care would benefit our economy, but the Administration hasn’t offered a credible plan to do so without raising taxes or rationing care.”