WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) today sent a letter to U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (R-WA), Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and U.S. Senator Orin Hatch (R-UT), Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, requesting a hearing to examine the vast difference between the original estimates and the most recent projections of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) on the rising costs of Obamacare.

“We rely on CBO to be a non-partisan resource for Congress, but we also depend on their projections to reflect a level of accuracy to allow us to make the best decisions on behalf of the people we serve,” Roberts said. “If the original estimates had contained the information in the most recent CBO projections, we might have been able to prevent the mess that is Obamacare today. At least the public would have had a much better understanding of the true costs, and I believe that would have impacted the debate.”

CBO’s projections since the passage of Obamacare have consistently shown a dramatic increase in the cost of this legislation both in work hours lost and in taxpayer dollars spent. The most recent numbers, which calculate work hours lost to be the equivalent of 2.5 million jobs, are significantly higher than previously reported and over double original estimates. The CBO now puts the cost of the law at $2 trillion, more than twice as much as previously estimated.

The following is the text of the letter sent today:

Dear Chairman Wyden and Ranking Member Hatch:         

I am writing today to urge the Senate Finance Committee (Finance) to schedule hearings to discuss the variance between the original estimates and the most recent projections of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) related to the cost to implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act (HCERA).

Both of these laws were passed through Congress by very narrow margins and without bipartisan support. I believe that if the original estimates had contained the information in the most recent CBO projections, it would have been unlikely that either bill would have become law. During the debate in both the Finance Committee and on the floor, I and many of my colleagues called into question the accuracy of the CBO’s projections. During that time we noted that the projections seemed to leave out costly and related legislative actions such as legislation to address the sustainable growth rate (SGR). We also noted that CBO’s assumption that the legislation would have a significant impact on reducing growth in spending or increasing costs savings was misleading. A specific example is the now defunct Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program.

CBO’s projections since the passage of the law have only shown what we identified during the debate to be true. The most recent numbers, which calculate work hours lost to be equivalent to 2.5 million jobs, are significantly higher than previously reported and over double original estimates. Additionally the cost of PPACA and HCERA continue to grow.  Most recent projections put the cost at $2 trillion, more than twice as much as previously estimated.

I believe it is incumbent upon the Finance Committee to have the CBO testify to the variability of their original estimates versus the most recent projections. We rely on CBO to be a non-partisan resource for Congress, but we also depend on their projections to reflect a level of accuracy to allow us to make the best decisions on behalf of the people we serve. Because of this I believe CBO should explain the drastic difference between their earlier numbers and most recent projections and that the Finance Committee should examine ways to ensure transparent and accurate projections are presented for accompanying legislation in the future.

I thank you for your consideration of this request.

Senator Roberts is an outspoken opponent of Obamacare. He is a senior member of the Senate Committee on Health Education Labor and Pensions and is the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee’s Subcommittee on Health Care. Roberts is co-chairman of the Senate Rural Health Caucus.

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