Bush Seeks Surplus via Medicare Cuts
By ROBERT PEAR
New York Times
WASHINGTON — In his new budget, to be unveiled Monday, President Bush will call for large cuts in the growth of Medicare, far exceeding what he proposed last year, and he will again seek major savings in Medicaid, according to administration officials and budget documents.
Over all, the 2009 budget is likely to be the first $3 trillion spending request by a president.
Health care savings are a crucial part of Mr. Bush’s plan to put the nation on track to achieve a budget surplus by 2012. But before then, the officials said Wednesday, the White House anticipates higher deficits in 2008 and 2009, reflecting the current weakness of the economy and the cost of a stimulus package.
The president’s budget will not seek money for another full year of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pentagon officials said the administration would request $70 billion for the fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1. That would be enough to continue combat operations for several months, until the next president takes office.
Mr. Bush has repeatedly said that the costs of Medicare and Medicaid, which dwarf spending for lawmakers’ pet projects, are unsustainable. The two health programs account for nearly one-fourth of all federal spending, and their combined cost — $627 billion last year — is expected to double in a decade.
(Continued here.)
New York Times
WASHINGTON — In his new budget, to be unveiled Monday, President Bush will call for large cuts in the growth of Medicare, far exceeding what he proposed last year, and he will again seek major savings in Medicaid, according to administration officials and budget documents.
Over all, the 2009 budget is likely to be the first $3 trillion spending request by a president.
Health care savings are a crucial part of Mr. Bush’s plan to put the nation on track to achieve a budget surplus by 2012. But before then, the officials said Wednesday, the White House anticipates higher deficits in 2008 and 2009, reflecting the current weakness of the economy and the cost of a stimulus package.
The president’s budget will not seek money for another full year of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Pentagon officials said the administration would request $70 billion for the fiscal year that begins on Oct. 1. That would be enough to continue combat operations for several months, until the next president takes office.
Mr. Bush has repeatedly said that the costs of Medicare and Medicaid, which dwarf spending for lawmakers’ pet projects, are unsustainable. The two health programs account for nearly one-fourth of all federal spending, and their combined cost — $627 billion last year — is expected to double in a decade.
(Continued here.)
Powered by Blogger
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home