Is all this talk of the "fiscal cliff" making you sick? Actually, it's the other way around: The biggest long-term driver of the federal budget and its eye-popping deficit is health care.

The government dollars go out the door through a variety of programs: benefits for federal workers, the military and veterans; Medicaid coverage for the poor and disabled; and the biggest slice of all, Medicare, the health-care program serving the elderly.

All...