Baby boomers have been especially hard-hit by the recession, facing the highest rate of long-term unemployment of any group of working-age Americans. Millions were uninsured and underinsured last year and reported burdensome medical debt and bill problems. A new study lays out how provisions of the new law will affect adults ages 50 to 64.

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Here’s a roundup of this morning’s must-read budget and economic stories:

The Telegraph says the cost of servicing the U.S. debt has reached “astronomical levels” in the last year and that this increase is wreaking havoc on world markets.

The Wall Street Journal says the Senate is today expected to vote on — and to pass — the tax package agreed to by President Obama and Republicans. Politico reports a repeal of the 1099 provision in the health care law passed this spring will not be part of the package. The Wall Street Journal says House Democrats are still trying to negotiate a higher tax on estates.

In advance of the House and Senate debate on the tax package this week, The Washington Post takes a look at the budget of a hypothetical family of four with an income of $250,000 – the level at which many in Washington consider “rich.” The New York Times says the tax package will most benefit middle-income Americans.

House Republicans continue to promise spending cuts when they come into power in January: according to The Hill, incoming House appropriators are committed to producing one piece of legislation a week that will cut spending. Speaker-elect John Boehner (R-OH) made the same promise in his Sunday interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes.” The Speaker-elect also pledged to cut spending for Members’ offices by five percent. Incoming House Budget chair Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), in an appearance on “Fox News Sunday,” also discussed the party’s plans for reducing spending. And, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), who will chair the House Oversight Committee, says the Committee will focus on rooting out waste in government programs.

Some good news: economists have improved their outlook for economic growth next year. According to a survey of 55 economists, the economy is now expected to expand by 2.6 percent in 2011. In other economic news, President Obama has invited some of the nation’s top CEOs to the White House Wednesday to discuss the economy.

A few key editorials and op-eds today: Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) says the federal government must address “regulatory uncertainty” if it hopes to get the economy going again; USA Today says it’s time to reform the tax code; and University of Chicago economist Allen Sanderson discusses how long unemployment benefits should last.

Reuters - European central bankers told euro zone governments on Friday not to count on the ECB to solve the single currency bloc's debt crisis alone as the leaders of Germany and France met to plot strategy before a key EU summit.

AP - A defiant Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen vowed Wednesday to push through Europe's toughest slash-and-tax budget in the face of voter fury, then defy the odds to win re-election despite a debt disaster that has shaken the entire eurozone.

Reuters - Bickering among European Union leaders escalated on Wednesday over a proposal for joint euro zone bonds to overcome the bloc's debt crisis, with Germany saying it opposed the idea on legal and economic grounds.

AP - Stocks mostly fell Wednesday as bond market investors continued to fret about Europe's debt crisis and increasingly over the scale of U.S. borrowing following President Barack Obama's agreement with the Republicans to extend about-to-expire tax cuts for all Americans.

President Obama's tax cut deal with Republicans will cost more than $700 billion. So what happened to concerns about the nation's exploding debt? Experts say the deal won't cause catastrophic damage but does highlight the need for political courage -- and a revamped tax code.

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Reuters - The head of the International Monetary Fund criticized Europe's piecemeal response to the euro zone debt crisis on Tuesday after Germany and other states resisted his calls for firmer action.

Charles Kadlec, Forbes
The sovereign debt crisis now threatening Europe, as well as major American states and cities, discloses the sheer incompetence of a political class that has over-promised, under-delivered and squandered vast amounts of their citizens' wealth. Greece, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, California, Illinois, Los Angeles and Chicago are simply the poster children for what happens when elected officials engage in reckless and irresponsible management of their economies, their banking system or their respective government's public finances....

Here’s a roundup of this morning’s must-read budget and economic stories:

Hold onto your wallets: according to Politico, Congress could pass as many as 100 bills this week.

The Washington Examiner says the “Fiscal Commission” was a failure because it refused to acknowledge that the nation’s debt problem is a matter of overspending, not under-taxing. Bloomberg’s Heidi Przybyla and Mike Dorning say Congress may take up some of the Commission’s recommendations even though the Commission didn’t get enough votes to officially send its plan to Congress. Commissioner Kent Conrad (D-ND) is calling on the White House to convene a budget summit.

Speaking of taxes, several news outlets report today that Congressional leaders are close to an agreement to extend all of the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. (On Saturday the Senate voted against a plan to extend some of the cuts.)

The Wall Street Journal says a compromise on increasing the nation’s debt ceiling could be part of the tax deal. During the election campaign, some Republicans said they would vote against an increase in the debt ceiling, which wasn’t expected to come up until spring 2011.

The Wall Street Journal reports the Republican-led Congress may take up a bailout of state and local pensions in the next Congress, which begins in January. According to one estimate, state and local governments are carrying up to $3 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities.

President Obama signed a continuing resolution (CR) Saturday that will fund the federal government for another two weeks. The CR is necessary because Congress has not yet passed the spending bills need for the current fiscal year (which began on Oct. 1).

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calls it a national security issue. Diplomats and foreign policy analysts warn that America's burgeoning debt and deficits have begun to erode its influence in the world.

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Rep. Jan Schakowsky, Huffington Post
Congresswoman from IllinoisWhile I cannot support the Simpson-Bowles plan, I thank the co-chairmen for their dedication to our difficult task over the last eight months, and I agree with them that the work was constructive despite our inability to get fourteen votes. I offered my own plan to achieve the goal outlined by the President to achieve primary budget balance by 2015 with one very different assumption. I believe that we can do it without further eroding the middle class in America. It pays to remember that just 10 years ago we had a budget surplus and the debt was rapidly...

After voting on a bold plan to put the nation's finances on sound footing, the president's debt commission adjourned Friday. While the plan won support from a majority of panel members, it failed to get the 14 votes needed to force congressional action. The question now: Can Congress muster the political will to rein in dangerous deficits?

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AP - President Barack Obama's deficit commission failed Friday to forge consensus on what to do about an increasingly urgent debt problem, but the breakdown of its vote lays out the road map for how Congress might address it next year.

AP - President Barack Obama's deficit commission failed Friday to forge consensus on what to do about an increasingly urgent debt problem, but the breakdown of its vote lays out the road map for how Congress might address it next year.

As expected, the president's bipartisan debt commission failed to get enough support this morning to send a bold plan to cut the deficit on to Congress.

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The Atlantic Wire - President Obama's deficit commission fell three votes shy this morning of the 14-person supermajority needed for a plan to face an up-or-down vote in Congress. The much-debated proposal sought to rein in the national debt by $3.9 trillion over nine years through a mix of spending cuts and tax increases. So what did the commission accomplish and what are the chances that its ideas will be implemented?

Daily Caller - With President Obama’s debt commission failing to pass its blueprint for debt reduction, some — especially those asking President Obama to raise their taxes — might like to know that the Treasury Department makes it easy for Americans to give more of their hard-earned money to the government.

Time.com - Washington claims to be serious about reining in a national debt headed for a crippling $20 trillion, but it won't be easy unless it grapples with typically untouchable programs

Politico - The result is 3 votes short of a goal that might have pressured congressional leaders to vote.

AP - President Barack Obama has tough choices to make if he wants Congress to swallow bitter medicine to cut the nation's deepening debt.

AP - President Barack Obama has tough choices to make if he wants Congress to swallow bitter medicine to cut the nation's deepening debt.

AP - Two of the Senate's most conservative Republicans on Thursday swung behind a deficit-slashing plan whose politically painful spending cuts include raising the Social Security retirement age. Their backing gives the proposal from leaders of President Barack Obama's debt commission momentum as it heads for a vote.

AP - A painful package of spending cuts and tax increases drew sharp challenges from both the left and right on President Barack Obama's deficit commission Wednesday, putting approval in doubt. However, both parties' Senate budget point men embraced the plan, and even opponents called it a starting point for efforts next year to control the nation's ballooning debt.