The GOP has recently released its own version of health care legislation. According to House GOP leader John Boehner (R-OH), the Republican plan would make health care more accessible and affordable for American families at better cost.

Four of the ideas proposed in the legislation are: to let families and businesses buy health insurance across state lines; to allow individuals, small businesses, and trade associations to pool together and acquire health insurance at lower prices; to give states the tools to create their own reforms that lower health care costs; and to end "junk" lawsuits that the Republicans say contribute to higher health care costs by increasing the number of tests and procedures that physicians occasionally order as a protective measure out of fear of litigation. The GOP summary of the bill says the plan will also lower health care premiums, prevent insurers from unjustly canceling policies and will create universal access programs that expand and reform high-risk pools to guarantee all Americans have access to health care, including those with pre-existing conditions.

"These are four smart, fiscally-responsible reforms that we can implement today to lower costs and expand access at a price our nation can afford," Boehner said in a press release, comparing the Republican version with the recent H.R. 3962, the Affordable Health Care for America Act. "Speaker Pelosi's health care bill will raise the cost of Americans' health insurance premiums; it will kill jobs with tax hikes and new mandates; and it will cut seniors' Medicare benefits." The bill is planned to be offered as substitute for H.R. 3962 during floor debate on introduced last week.

Rep. Louise Slaughter, (D-NY) Chairman of the House Rules Committee, announced Saturday that H.R. 3962 would be scheduled for a hearing and markup this week. Sponsor Rep. John D. Dingell's (D-MI) Manager's Amendment was posted on the House Rules Committee website Tuesday, indicating the final bill could come up for a vote possibly as early as Friday. The bill will include a medical device industry tax imposed on the first taxable sale of any medical device, equal to 2.5 percent of the wholesale price of devices. The Utilization Rate assumption for advanced diagnostic imaging services would be increased from 50 percent to 75 percent. The technical component payment reduction for sequential imaging services on consecutive body parts during the same visit would increase from 25 percent to 50 percent.

Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) has released a preliminary analysis of H.R. 3962, as introduced. H.R. 3962 would establish a mandate for most individuals to obtain health insurance; set up insurance "exchanges" where some individuals and families could receive federal subsidies to substantially reduce the cost of purchasing coverage; expand eligibility for Medicaid; reduce the growth of Medicare's payment rates for most services; impose an income tax surcharge on high-income individuals; and other changes to the tax code, Medicaid and Medicare.

According to CBO and JCT's assessment, enacting H.R. 3962 would result in a net reduction in federal budget deficits of $104 billion over the 2010-2019 period. In the next decade, the result would a slight reduction in federal budget deficits. The estimate has a projected net cost of $894 billion over 10 years for the proposed expansions in insurance coverage. That net figure includes the gross total of $1,055 billion in subsidies provided through the exchanges (and related spending), increased net outlays for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and tax credits for small employers. The costs would be partly offset by $167 billion in penalty collections from individuals and employers, spending changes, receipts resulting from the income tax surcharge on high-income individuals and other provisions.

GOP Leader Boehner's remarks can be accessed at: http://gopleader.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=152439

Rep. Slaughter's remarks and the amendments to the bill can be accessed at:
http://rules.house.gov/PRArticle.aspx?NewsID=4486

The Congressional Budget Office's letter can be accessed at:
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/106xx/doc10688/hr3962Rangel.pdf