The latest version of the Democrats' health overhaul costs $940 billion over a decade, yet it would bring down the federal budget deficit by $138 billion, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The cost includes $466 billion to give tax credits to help lower earners buy insurance, $434 billion to expand the Medicaid federal-state insurance program for the poor, and $40 billion in tax credits to help small businesses offer coverage. The CBO said the Senate bill by itself would reduce the federal budget deficit by $118 billion over a decade compared with current law. That's because the new taxes and spending cuts are greater than the cost of expanding insurance coverage, the Wall Street Journal reports.
