Nov. 7--Last week, fearmongering House Republican leader John Boehner tried to scare American seniors with claims that the House of Representatives' health reform bill contains "massive cuts" in Medicare that "would have a negative impact on seniors' benefits and choices."
In a visit to Charleston earlier this week, Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., parroted him.
The exact opposite is true, according to AARP and the truth-seeking Web site, Factcheck.org. "To characterize these as 'massive cuts' ... is simply rubbish," Factcheck says.
Thursday, AARP, the American Medical Association and the American Cancer Society endorsed the House bill, which leaves every Medicare recipient in better position. AARP declared:
"The changes actually aim to strengthen Medicare and improve beneficiaries' care and access to physicians. The proposals even add new benefits; for example, making preventative measures, such as mammograms and colonoscopies, free to beneficiaries and substantially improving prescription drug coverage."
Under the House bill, seniors would have no co-payment for preventative services like mammograms. They would be free of the infamous "doughnut hole" in Medicare Part D which forces many of them to pay 100 percent of prescription drug costs when they reach a certain cost level.
The bill also expands the government's authority to clamp down on waste and fraud and reward quality and efficiency. The Congressional Budget Office says the bill saves hundreds of billions in reimbursements to doctors and hospitals over 10 years. It adds a productivity factor to the reimbursement formula, as recommended by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.
The bill also reduces the amount that would be paid to private insurance companies that run Medicare Advantage Programs, the so-called "Cadillac programs." The CBO found the firms were padding their bills, charging 14 percent more than necessary to administer the plans.
The bottom line: Rep. Boehner's "massive cuts" are actually savings measures recommended by the national Medicare Payment Advisory Commission.
Republicans howl that the bill costs too much, then attack efforts to rein in costs. What hypocrisy!
One in five seniors are in Advantage programs. They get extra benefits such as gym visits and eyeglasses. If the private insurance companies start charging based on actual cost, their benefits may not be affected. In no case will they receive less than regular Medicare.
Capito and other Republicans should stop trying to scare older people with misleading, partial information. Their constituents deserve the whole picture.
Under this bill, no senior loses any basic benefits, and every senior receives major new, lifesaving -- and money-saving -- benefits. It will leave them all, in total, better off than they are now.
The bill is being debated today. For the sake of millions of Americans, it deserves to pass.
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