CBO: We didn’t have enough time to accurately estimate health bill’s cost

The Obama administration threatened to veto parts of its own health care bill after budget scorekeepers found that the package would add at least $115 billion more to government health care spending.

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The costs were not reflected in earlier estimates by the budget office, although Republican lawmakers strenuously argued that they should have been. Part of the reason is technical: the additional spending is not mandatory, leaving Congress with discretion to provide the funds in follow-on legislation — or not.

Congressional estimators also said they simply had not had enough time to run the numbers.

Costs could go higher, because the legislation authorizes several programs without setting specific funding levels.

Full story: Administration Threatens to Veto Health Spending Bill After Price Tag Jumps