Some taxes with the new government takeover

Why would you want to put an extra tax on vaccines that the government buys? If the government is the sole buyer, even if the government is buying at cost, the tax will raise the price of what the government pays. This raises the question of the CBO could view this tax as a net reduction in the deficit. From Politico:

Senate Republicans are pointing out a provision that would tax the makers of swine flu vaccines and drugs. The provision raises $2.3 billion annually from drug makers who sell their products through government programs.

“When everybody is coming together to fight a possible pandemic the last thing the government should be doing is taxing the people who manufacture the vaccines and the drugs to treat H1N1 flu,” said a Senate Republican leadership aide. . . .