Raising the Medicare Eligibility Age Will Actually INCREASE Costs
Policymakers and pundits continue to propose Medicare changes that would have severe repercussions for beneficiaries and their families. These proposals will continue to make news as deficit discussions heat up. Too often, however, they are based on false information, which is repeated as fact by the media, pundits and policymakers. We aim to correct public misinformation about Medicare.
Medicare Works. For 46 years it has opened doors to necessary care for hundreds of millions of older and disabled people, and enhanced economic security for beneficiaries and their families. Informed Americans need to know the truth about the program and the people it serves.
Did you know?
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (www.cbpp.org) that “Raising Medicare’s eligibility age from 65 to 67, which the new Joint Select Committee will likely consider this fall as a deficit-reduction measure, would not only fail to constrain health care costs across the economy; it would increase them.
While this proposal would save the federal government money, it would do so by shifting costs to most of the 65- and 66-year-olds who would lose Medicare coverage, to employers that provide health coverage for their retirees, to Medicare beneficiaries, to younger people who buy insurance through the new health insurance exchanges, and to states.
View the full report at: http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3564 or http://www.cbpp.org/files/8-23-11health.pdf 7pp.
Some Reasonable Ways to Save Medicare Dollars
With lots of attention on the upcoming debt-reduction “Super Committee,” many ideas about saving federal dollars are in the air, not the least of which include restructuring Medicare. Some of these ideas are sound, others are not. For a discussion of some reasonable ideas about Medicare that will not simply shift more costs to beneficiaries, see this New York Times Op-Ed piece written by Dr. Ezekiel J. Emanuel and Professor Jeffrey B. Liebman. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/23/opinion/cut-medicare-help-patients.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y
While we disagree that “cutting Medicare” is a foregone conclusion, this article argues for eliminating Medicare coverage for tests, treatments and procedures that don’t work, and states that the Affordable Care Act should be left alone to do its job of producing higher quality, more efficient care. Across the board cuts aren’t smart, and cost-shifting to beneficiaries - including raising the age of Medicare eligibility - is not the right approach. We agree with these points. (IF the necessity for a given procedure and eligibility for coverage is decided based on each individual’s actual circumstances.)
For additional ideas of how to achieve savings in the Medicare program without gouging beneficiaries or backtracking on its promise, see the Center for Medicare Advocacy’s suggested Six Solutions. http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/2011/06/so-what-would-you-do-real-solutions-for-medicare-solvency-and-reducing-the-deficit/
We’re Not the Only Ones Saying It: Let ACA Work!
As the Center has written, letting the Affordable Care Act do its job is a key component to reducing rising health care costs. Lawmakers appointed to the “Super Committee,” tasked with finding $1.5 trillion in deficit-reductions, will be considering various options to meet their budgeting goals. While doing so, we urge them to heed the words of Paul Van de Water of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, who writes:
“The Affordable Care Act (ACA) holds the potential to vastly improve Medicare’s long-term financial outlook…These reforms will take time to plan, test, and implement. But they can succeed only if we give them a chance, and that won’t happen if health reform opponents succeed in repealing them.” (Read the rest of the Van de Water’s blog at: http://www.offthechartsblog.org/the-%E2%80%9Csupercommittee%E2%80%9D-and-medicare/)
Support health care reform and reasoned approaches to our national budget concerns. Let ACA work!
Medicare Facts & Fiction: 3 More Lessons to Combat Medicare Spin
Congress continues to propose Medicare changes that will have severe repercussions for beneficiaries and their families. Policymakers and pundits are feeding the media and the public misinformation about Medicare. The truth is, most people with Medicare are low-income and most pay more for health care than other insured Americans. Nonetheless, Medicare Works. For 46 years it has opened doors to necessary care for millions of older people, people with disabilities, and their families.
Did you know?
- Medicare beneficiaries already spend a disproportionate share of their income on health expenses. Health expenses accounted for nearly 15% of Medicare household budgets in 2009, on average – three times the percentage of health spending among non-Medicare households (Kaiser Family Foundation Data Spotlight: Health Care on a Budget, June 2011)
- The financial burden of health care costs is greatest for Medicare beneficiaries ages 85 and older, those in relatively poor health, those with low or modest incomes, and those with Medigap supplemental policies (Kaiser Family Foundation Data Spotlight: How Much Skin in the Game is Enough?, June 2011)
- Half of all Medicare beneficiaries had incomes below $22,000 in 2010; less than 1% had incomes over $250,000
- Median per capita income declines with age, and is lower for black, Hispanic, and unmarried Medicare beneficiaries (Kaiser Family Foundation Data Spotlight: Projecting Income and Assets, June 2011)
- Raising the age of Medicare eligibility to 67, as has been proposed recently, will not produce significant savings: according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, most savings to the Medicare program would be off-set by other federal expenditures, and there would be a net increase in out of pocket costs for those age 65 and 66 who would otherwise have been covered by Medicare (Kaiser Family Foundation, Raising the Age of Medicare Eligibility, July 2011)
Surely there are better ways to save money than by piling more onto an already burdened population?
Medicare Facts & Fiction: 3 Quick Lessons to Combat Medicare Spin
Congress continues to propose Medicare changes that will have severe repercussions for beneficiaries and their families. Policymakers and pundits are feeding the media and the public misinformation about Medicare. The truth is, most people with Medicare are low-income and most pay more for health care than other insured Americans. Nonetheless, Medicare Works. For 46 years it has opened doors to necessary care for millions of older people, people with disabilities, and their families.
Did you know?
- The average income of Medicare beneficiaries is less than $22,000 per year.
- Medicare beneficiaries already pay more out-of-pocket for health care than people with other health insurance.
- Higher income people with Medicare already pay higher premiums for Medicare than other Medicare beneficiaries.
What’s Fair? Should we tax Millionaires or grandparents? Millionaires.
Center for Medicare Advocacy Recommended as Top-10 Caregiver Resource
Jane Gross, creator of The New York Times‘ “New Old Age” blog, recently highlighted the Center for Medicare Advocacy as a top 10 resource for caregivers in an appearance on “Krista Tippet On Being” on NPR. The episode, entitled “The Far Shore of Aging” is garnering an overwhelming response from listeners. See the complete list of resources, and listen to the full show, at http://being.publicradio.org/programs/2011/far-shore-of-aging/gross_topten.shtml.
It’s Mediare’s Anniversary: Make Sure it Has Many More
The Center for Medicare Advocacy has represented older and disabled Medicare beneficiaries for over 25 years. We have seen the value of this time-honored program to our clients and their families. We have seen people with Medicare live better, more secure, longer lives. The 46th anniversary of Medicare, one of our country’s great successes, should not be tarnished by gutting the program for the next generation or changing its core structure, that holds the same promise for all of us, regardless of income. The universality of Medicare’s guaranteed benefits has been its hallmark and saving grace. Celebrate Medicare by preserving these time-tested values.
Hello Leaders: Are You Listening?
Medicaid Matters!
Medicare has received most of the headlines regarding proposals from Congress and the Administration to reduce the federal deficit and raise the federal debt ceiling. Proposals to restructure Medicaid have been receiving less attention than those about Medicare. But Medicaid, which serves nearly 60 million Americans − older people, people with disabilities, pregnant women, children and their families – may be in greater jeopardy than Medicare. The good news is that more than 50% of all Americans either have received services through Medicaid or have a friend or family member who has, so most Americans know something about Medicaid and its importance to them, their families and friends.
Medicare and Medicaid – Inextricably Intertwined
Nearly nine million low-income Medicare beneficiaries depend on Medicaid to help them pay Medicare’s significant premiums and cost-sharing and to pay for services erroneously denied or excluded from Medicare coverage, including nursing home care and community-based long-term supports and services. These beneficiaries are generally poorer and sicker than the general Medicare population. They comprise 21% of Medicare enrollees, and use 36% of Medicare dollars. They comprise 15% of Medicaid enrollees and use 40% of Medicaid dollars. Medicaid is critical to the health and well-being of these individuals and their families.
For these beneficiaries, Medicaid is necessary to cover:
- Medicare’s Out-of-Pocket Costs –Medicaid pays for all of Medicare’s cost-sharing for about four million Medicare beneficiaries and pays the Part B premium for more than eight million beneficiaries.
- Long-Term Care Supports and Services – More than 10 million people in the U.S. have long-term care needs and more than 80% of those people live in the community. Medicare pays for only about one-quarter of spending for long-term care. When family resources are exhausted or in need of additional support, Medicaid steps in.
- Nursing Facility Services –Medicaid pays some costs for 70% of all nursing home residents, most of whom are also eligible for Medicare.
- Home and Community-Based Services – Increasingly, Medicaid is paying for long-term care supports and services in the community in addition to paying for care in nursing facilities.
Real People Depend on Medicaid to Pay for Services Not Covered by Medicare or to Provide Coverage When Medicare is Denied
The Center for Medicare Advocacy represents thousands of dually eligible people who need help paying their Medicare cost-sharing or who have been denied Medicare coverage. These older and disabled people would go without necessary health care if they did not have Medicaid to help pay their Medicare out-of-pocket costs or to rely on when Medicare denies coverage – often erroneously.
Although our clients may eventually win coverage on appeal, the vast majority of dually eligible people lack representation, and do not appeal Medicare denials. They depend on Medicaid to pay for necessary health care. The ability to fall back on Medicaid when Medicare coverage is denied, or is no longer available, or does not cover the needed health service, is also a blessing for families. Without Medicaid, families of these older and disabled people would have to find the resources themselves to pay for their loved-ones’ care, see them go without the care they need, or try to provide it themselves.
Medicaid matters. Protect it - for the health of all Americans.
Like this:
Sen. Lieberman: Wrong Way on Medicare
We’re sorry – Connecticut’s Senior Senator has once again entered the Medicare “reform” debate with the wrong perspective. Instead of looking to insure more people while lowering costs, Senator Lieberman, and his colleague Sen. Coburn, unveiled a plan on June 28th that is misdirected – reducing the number of people covered by Medicare, and foregoing major opportunities to bring down costs.
The Lieberman-Coburn proposal would raise the age of eligibility for Medicare, raise the cost of Medicare for beneficiaries, limit the ability to purchase supplemental insurance to fill Medicare’s gaps, and continue billions of dollars of wasteful overpayments to pharmaceutical companies and private Medicare plans.
Listen carefully folks, this is not the right direction for Medicare!
Read more of Judith Stein’s comments on the plan nobody is going to like in the CT Mirror at http://www.ctmirror.org/story/13101/liebermancoburn
