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A new prescription drug has the potential to upend the nation’s health care system and dramatically increase costs for federal health care programs and state budgets.The drug, called Sovaldi, is a highly effective treatment for Hepatitis C -- an infectious…

Last week the House Ways and Means Committee voted to advance bills making six more expiring tax provisions permanent without offsetting the lost revenue.If these six bills are all enacted, they would increase budget deficits by $400 billion in the…

The Milliman Medical Index shows the average employer-sponsored health care plan for a family of four cost $23,215 this year, a 5.4 percent jump from 2013.While this far exceeds the general rate of inflation, it is the smallest increase since…

The IRS recently estimated that 318,000 federal workers and retirees owe the government more than $3.3 billion in back taxes. That includes hundreds who work for Congress or in the federal courts, and 36 who work at the White House…

Although Congress has set a general course for reduced military spending in the years ahead, in May lawmakers in both parties again rejected specific cost-saving measures proposed by the administration and the Pentagon.Late in the month, the House approved a…

Between 2012 and 2050, America’s 65-and-older population will almost double in size to 83.7 million, according to new Census Bureau projections.The bureau recently released two reports -- one on the aging population and another focusing on the Baby Boom --…

Politicians and policy experts from across the political spectrum agreed on one thing at a “Fiscal Summit” last Wednesday: Despite the falling deficit, our fundamental fiscal challenges have not yet been adequately addressed.The fifth annual summit held in Washington by…

Congress may have lost interest this year in dealing with the nation’s long-term fiscal challenges, but an updated online game gives average citizens the chance to put together their own federal deficit-reduction plans.The Federal Budget Challenge lets players weigh some…