The White House blasted the budget office that predicted devastating effects for the Senate health bill

pulse

June 27, 2017 1:17 AM

"The CBO has consistently proven it cannot accurately predict how healthcare legislation will impact insurance coverage," the White House said.

President Donald Trump at a press conference during which he accused James Comey of lying under oath.

The White House blasted the Congressional Budget Office on Monday, hours after the nonpartisan agency predicted devastating effects for the Senate's new healthcare bill.

"The CBO has consistently proven it cannot accurately predict how healthcare legislation will impact insurance coverage," the White House said in a statement.

"This history of inaccuracy, as demonstrated by its flawed report on coverage, premiums, and predicted deficit arising out of Obamacare, reminds us that its analysis must not be trusted blindly."

Earlier on Monday, the CBO projected that 22 million fewer people would have health coverage under the Better Care Reconciliation Act than under the current healthcare system.

That figure is only marginally better than the 23 million projected to lose coverage under the American Health Care Act, the healthcare bill the House of Representatives passed in May.

The White House attempted to discredit the CBO, however, by pointing to the agency's 2010 analysis of President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act.

"In 2013, the CBO estimated that 24 million people would have coverage under Obamacare by 2016," the White House statement said. "It was off by an astounding 13 million people — more than half — as less than 11 million were actually covered."

On the other hand, the CBO also overestimated how much the ACA would cost, according to The Washington Post.

In analysis posted Monday, The Post took issue with the criticism of the CBO:

Read the full White House statement below:

pulse