04/29/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/29/2024 10:30
Washington, D.C. - Congressman Michael C. Burgess, M.D. (R-TX), Chairman of the Budget Committee Health Care Task Force, joined House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) in sending a letter to Comptroller General Gene Dodaro of the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting an investigation into the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and its effect on the federal budget.
Click HERE for the full letter.
On the costly effect of CMMI on the federal budget:
Increases in federal spending on health care in the United States-including Medicare and Medicaid-continue to exert significant pressure on the federal budget. At the same time, studies have found that higher levels of spending do not reliably lead to enhanced quality of care.
In 2010, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated CMMI would result in net savings of $1.3 billion over the ten-year budget window. A September 2023 report from CBO revised the agency's prior analysis, estimating CMMI's activities increased direct spending by $5.4 billion in Medicare, between 2011 and 2020.
In addition, CBO now currently projects that CMMI's activities will increase net federal spending by $1.3 billion in Medicare, over the center's second decade, which extends from 2021 to 2030.
On requesting GAO examine CMMI's use of dedicated funding and assessment of its performance:
Background:
Established by Obamacare with the goal of saving taxpayer money and improving the quality of care for beneficiaries, CMMI has failed to deliver on its mandate.
In 2010, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that CMMI would produce net savings over the 10-year budget window. CBO revised its analysis last year, finding that CMMI is not saving tax dollars but rather has increased federal spending by billions of dollars.
The letter follows a recent HCTF member roundtable focused on examining why CMMI is adding billions to the national debt, rather than generating budgetary savings as the program intended.
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