A conclusion that should be common sense to most people, but Democrats have spent months arguing that basic economic principles will magically disappear in this particular case.

Anyway, Joint Congressional Committee on Taxation confirms that Baucus’ health care overhaul proposal will both lower wages and increase premiums on the average American family.

Many employers share the cost of the insurance they provide with their employees; that is, the employer pays some portion of the insurance premium, and the employee pays for some portion. To the extent that the increased cost of the insurance policy is paid by the employer, we would expect that to exert downward pressure on wages paid by the employer. To the extent that the increased premium cost is paid through the employee share, the added cost of the excise tax can be expected to reduce consumer demand for high cost insurance products. Over time, the downward pressure on wages attributable to the employer share of the increased cost would also reduce consumer demand for high-cost insurance products.

But here’s the big problem, as Ed Morrissey notes:

The problem with that is the definition of “high cost insurance products”. The JCT is not talking about the upper 5% of health-care plans, not even in the initial year. In the first year of the tax, the JCT predicts that 11% of all plans will be subject to the excise tax. By 2019, the JCT predicts that a third of all policies will carry that tax, increasing costs and depressing wages in one form or another.

So the net effect of the Baucus plan? You’ll be receiving less money in your paycheck every week yet paying a higher cost for your health insurance. You’ll be paying more while receiving less money. It’s an economic disaster for the American family.