Obama’s new health-care argument: A primer

3. His plan reduces premiums for Americans
“My proposal would bring down the cost of health care for millions,” Obama said. “We have now incorporated most of the serious ideas from across the political spectrum about how to contain the rising cost of health care.”

Democrats argue that while rates would go up, subsidies paid by the government to many Americans would reduce the actual amount they would be paying out of their pocket. Republicans counter that this is not reducing costs, but rather will require an increase in taxes to transfer more money from some Americans to others to pay higher premiums.

4. His plan reduces the federal budget deficit
“The bottom line is, our proposal is paid for,” Obama said.

The president’s proposal has not been released in legislative language, so there is no way for the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to verify the president’s claim.

As for the Senate bill, CBO said in December that the Senate bill would reduce the deficit by $132 billion during the first 10 years.

Republicans points to statistics from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency that runs Medicare and Medicaid, that said the bill would increase expenditures over the first decade by $222 billion.

Republicans such as Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Republican, say Democrats have written the bill in a way that double counts almost half a trillion in savings that will be spent on a new program. The actual addition to the deficit, he says, will be $460 billion.