The unspoken truth about Mr Obama's ... effort to reach universal coverage is that you may not be able to keep your existing health plan--at least, not at the same price. That is because paying for expanding coverage must involve capping or eliminating the tax exclusion currently favouring employer-based health cover. That single distortion of the tax code costs some $250 billion a year--the biggest kitty of money lying around in Washington. But tapping some of that inevitably means some Americans will see de facto tax increases.

via Health-care reform's dirty little secret | Democracy in America | Economist.com.