Still Spinning Healthcare Down, Although Up

This won't be the first such report:

... the [Health and Human Services Department] analysis [of the healthcare legislation] also found that the law falls short of the president's twin goal of controlling runaway costs, raising projected spending by about 1 percent over 10 years. That increase could get bigger, since Medicare cuts in the law may be unrealistic and unsustainable, the report warned.

It's a worrisome assessment for Democrats.

In particular, concerns about Medicare could become a major political liability in the midterm elections. The report projected that Medicare cuts could drive about 15 percent of hospitals and other institutional providers into the red, "possibly jeopardizing access" to care for seniors.

Recall that what little actual support there was for this legislation, and what broad support there was for "need reform" questions, had to do with getting costs under control. Now the spin is that the legislation will only add 1% to costs. Of course, that's still taking into account cuts and changes that aren't politically plausible or financially workable.

Not for no reason does the legislation delay the bulk of its provisions until after a couple of election cycles. Life in the United States is about to become substantially worse, at least for those who have the misfortune of becoming sick or needing a job or not being rich or well connected.