by Calculated Risk on 4/13/2005 06:39:00 PM

The highest priority fiscal problem in the US is the budget deficit; we will add close to $650 Billion in debt this fiscal year alone! The second highest priority is the US health care system.

In "Ailing Health Care", Paul Krugman tries to change the debate from Social Security to health care. As Krugman wrote, the issue is "health care reform," not "Medicare reform." The problem is far larger than Medicare alone, and yet the Medicare shortfall dwarfs the projected Social Security shortfall.

Earlier this year, the GAO pointed out that health care is the largest and perhaps most difficult part of the long-term fiscal challenges. The GAO calculated the Social Security shortfall at $3.7 Trillion (over 75 years) and the Medicare shortfall at almost $28 Trillion over the same period; more than 7 times larger than the Social Security shortfall. And Medicare is only a portion of the health care crisis!

As a follow up to Krugman, Kash compared some outcomes and expenses in the US to several other developed Nations.

Today, Kash followed up with more comments on the "Performance of the US Health Care System."

Angry Bear followed up with the first in a three part series: "Health Care in The U.S. And The World, Part I: How much do we spend?"

If it was up to me, I would change the debate to the deficit. But real budget solutions are probably unachievable in this ideologically driven period. Doesn't that apply to health care too? So what is the solution? Do nothing for four years?