CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons today launched another attack on what he calls the health care “reform” legislation pushed by U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, saying the measure will cost Nevada residents $613 million a year in additional state taxes.

A Reid spokesman countered that Gibbons should read the bill before commenting on the legislation.

Gibbons said the legislation, which passed the U.S. Senate in a late-night vote on Sunday, “will neither promote good health in Nevada nor reform our current health care system.”

“Sen. Reid is wishing Nevadans a Merry Christmas with a smile on his face and a knife in our backs,” he said.

The $613 million is what the state will have to pay out of its general fund for the expansion of the state Medicaid program after three years when federal coverage for the expanded caseload ends, according to the Gibbons administration.

“Nevadans will also pay more than $1.5 billion through increased federal income taxes, Gibbons said. “This irresponsible legislation will bankrupt the state of Nevada and leave every working Nevada family out in the cold in the New Year.”

Reid spokesman Jon Summers replied: “Based on how Jim Gibbons has run this state, whatever he is against is probably good for Nevada. Instead of using his official office to parrot national Republican talking points the governor may want to take some time to actually read the legislation that is posted online and was even read on the Senate Floor for him on Saturday.“

Summers said the bill lowers premiums for Nevadans by as much as $1,600 a year, provides tax credits for 24,000 Nevada businesses, extends the life of Medicare by nearly a decade, and provides access to health care for more than half a million uninsured Nevadans.

But Gibbons said Reid’s health care measure will subject Americans to unwanted changes to their health coverage and increase their taxes. Reid is also ignoring the 56 percent of Nevadans who oppose the measure, a number Gibbons said is growing every day.

“Sen. Reid needs to look at the damage his health care plan will do to Nevada and stop pandering to special interests and his political friends,” he said. “Reid and his Democrat supporters are playing games with implementation dates and hiding harmful cuts to vulnerable senior citizens, all the while pretending the average taxpayer will not end up holding the bag.”

Gibbons also criticized Reid for including language in the bill to benefit Nebraska and its Medicaid program in an effort to secure the 60 votes needed to move the legislation forward.

“Maybe he should move to Nebraska where he can do less harm to Nevada,” Gibbons said.