Budget Committee Wants to Increase the Costs to People in Medicare, the Government-run Healthcare Program for the Elderly

U.S. Treasury Sees a $2 Trillion Increase in the Debt Ceiling Needed to Last Through the November 2012 Elections; 'Gang of Six' Wants Budget Cuts to Match the Amount Congress Raises the Borrowing Limit

May 24, 2011

Reuters - ...Republicans want deficit savings to match the amount the administration wants to raise the borrowing limit, and the U.S. Treasury sees a $2 trillion increase in the debt ceiling needed to last through the November 2012 elections.

The Tuesday session, which will be held on Capitol Hill, is expected to focus on healthcare spending, according to a source close to the discussions.

Analysts at the non-partisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimate that savings to the U.S. budget deficit of between $25 billion and $130 billion could be achieved over 10 years by increasing the costs to people in the Medicare healthcare program for the elderly.

Biden's group has initially focused on areas where the two sides can most easily agree.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that these areas could yield deficit savings of between $1 and $2 trillion over the next decade.

Biden's group includes four Democrat lawmakers and two Republicans, including Eric Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House of Representatives.

Cantor said Biden's group was only laying the groundwork for final talks between Obama, House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, and Senate leaders.

"We are engaging in these discussions right now in the Biden commission to really understand where both sides are," Cantor told reporters on Monday.

The United States reached the congressionally mandated $14.3 trillion limit on its borrowing on May 16.

Administration officials are using special accounting measures to avoid a default for now but they warn their leeway to do that will run out on August 2.