
How much did President Obama save on Medicare?
President Obama supported using most of the $716 billion in Medicare savings to help pay for coverage expansion, and supports enacting further savings for deficit reduction.
How much will Obamacare cost in total?
The tax credits and other cost-sharing subsidies are estimated to cost $350 billion over 10 years, while the Medicaid expansion costs $434 billion, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Those two initiatives add up to more than $500 billion.
Did Obama steal $500 billion out of Medicare under Obamacare?
Congress passed the law through its normal process, and the cost reductions for Medicare were out in the open during the many weeks that the final law was being negotiated. Bachmann said that, "We know that President Obama stole over $500 billion out of Medicare to switch it over to Obamacare."
How much does President Obama support Medicare cuts through 2022?
In addition, Chairman Ryan’s budget would retain the $88 billion in Medicare cuts from the “ sequester ” (from a 2% across-the-board provider reduction) and calls for some additional Medicare cuts. On a comparable basis, President Obama supports about $990 billion of past and future Medicare cuts through 2022.

What did Obamacare do to Medicare?
Medicare Premiums and Prescription Drug Costs The ACA closed the Medicare Part D coverage gap, or “doughnut hole,” helping to reduce prescription drug spending. It also increased Part B and D premiums for higher-income beneficiaries. The Bipartisan Budget Act (BBA) of 2018 modified both of these policies.
How did Obamacare hurt the economy?
Based solely on recent economic growth, the ACA has subtracted $250 billion from GDP. At that pace, the cumulative loss by the end of the decade will exceed $1.2 trillion. Lost growth in work hours per person has removed the equivalent of 800,000 full-time jobs from the economy.
Who benefited from Obamacare?
More than 20 million Americans gained health insurance under the ACA. Black Americans, children and small-business owners have especially benefited. Thirty-seven states have expanded Medicaid, deepening their pool of eligible residents to those who live at or below 138% of the federal poverty level.
Was Obamacare good for the economy?
In reviewing evidence over the past five years, this report concludes that the ACA has had no net negative economic impact and, in fact, has likely helped to stimulate growth by contributing to the slower rise in health care costs.
Did Obamacare help the poor?
For those in these lowest-income percentiles, gaining Medicaid coverage virtually eliminated out-of-pocket health care spending; thus, the ACA increased average income as a percentage of the federal poverty level by 18.8 percent, 13.0 percent, 8.4 percent, and 8.4 percent among those in the tenth, twentieth, thirtieth, ...
Did Obamacare raise taxes?
It's been estimated that the ACA will raise taxes by $813 billion over 10 years. Over 12 of these new taxes will be on families making less than $250,000 a year.
Who suffered the most from Obamacare?
The ACA had an equalizing effect, reducing racial and ethnic disparities in coverage. Hispanic people had the highest initial uninsured rate and experienced the greatest gains (an overall decline of 15 percentage points in uninsured rates and a nine-point decline in the gap with whites).
What is wrong Obamacare?
The ACA has been highly controversial, despite the positive outcomes. Conservatives objected to the tax increases and higher insurance premiums needed to pay for Obamacare. Some people in the healthcare industry are critical of the additional workload and costs placed on medical providers.
Was Obamacare successful?
Indisputably, yes. More than 20 million people have gained coverage as a result of the ACA. It has dramatically reduced the uninsured rate. On the day President Obama signed the ACA, 16 percent of Americans were uninsured; in March 2020, it was nine percent.
What are at least three good things that have resulted from the implementation of Obamacare?
The ACA protects people with preexisting conditions from discrimination. ... Medicaid expansion helped millions of lower-income individuals access health care and more. ... Health care became more affordable. ... Women can no longer be charged more for insurance and are guaranteed coverage for services essential to women's health.More items...•
Why the Affordable Care Act should be repealed?
Repeal Would Worsen Racial Disparities Black and Hispanic people were also more likely to avoid using health care due to cost. While the ACA did not eliminate these gaps, it narrowed disparities in both coverage and access to care significantly, and striking down the law would widen them once again.
How much did Obama cut from Medicare?
A recent advertisement from the Romney-Ryan campaign claims that “Obama Cut $716 billion from Medicare… to pay for Obamacare.” It continues by claiming that “The Romney-Ryan plan protects Medicare benefits for today’s seniors and strengthens the plan for the next generation.”
What would Ryan's budget repeal?
Chairman Ryan’s budget would repeal the coverage provisions of the ACA, but would keep most of the $716 billion in Medicare cuts. In addition, Chairman Ryan’s budget would retain the $88 billion in Medicare cuts from the “ sequester ” (from a 2% across-the-board provider reduction) and calls for some additional Medicare cuts.
Is Medicare a premium support system?
Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan support implementing a premium support system in Medicare for those currently below the age of 55 (when they reach eligibility), which could result in substantial long-term savings.
Did Obamacare cut Medicare?
It is true that the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”, or the ACA) cut Medicare spending to finance a new health program. The number that the Romney-Ryan ad cites is from a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report that estimates repealing the ACA would increase Medicare spending by $716 billion through 2022. This funding was used primarily ...
Will Medicare be kept under the ACA?
Although some lawmakers may not want to retain all of the Medicare reductions from the ACA, many of them stem from ideas with broad bipartisan support – particularly in the policy community – and should at least be kept on the table as we consider ways to slow the growth of Medicare.
Did Obama use Medicare savings?
President Obama supported using most of the $716 billion in Medicare savings to help pay for coverage expansion, and supports enacting further savings for deficit reduction. Congressman Ryan supports largely retaining those same Medicare savings, but repealing the coverage expansions and using the money – along with addition savings – for deficit reduction. Governor Romney believes those Medicare reductions, along with coverage expansions, should be reversed – and has not made any significant short-term Medicare proposals for deficit reduction.
How much did Obama steal from Medicare?
Bachmann said that, "We know that President Obama stole over $500 billion out of Medicare to switch it over to Obamacare.".
What is the new spending on Medicare?
Mostly, the new spending in the health care law comes from tax credits to help people of modest incomes buy health insurance and from expanding Medicaid to offer coverage to the poor.
How much will Medicare cost in 2020?
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects Medicare spending will reach $929 billion in 2020, up from $499 billion in actual spending in 2009. So while the health care law reduces the amount of future spending growth in Medicare, the law doesn't cut current funding for Medicare.
How much money does Medicare save?
Other savings include $36 billion from increases in premiums for higher-income beneficiaries and $12 billion from administrative changes.
What did Bachmann say about Obama?
She also took the opportunity to criticize the new health care law championed by President Barack Obama, saying, "We know that President Obama stole over $500 billion out ...
Who criticized the Supreme Court decision to uphold the ACA?
Says Amy Coney Barrett “has a written track record, disagreeing adamantly with the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the ACA. In fact, she publicly criticized Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion upholding the law eight years ago.”
Do companies that don't offer health insurance have to pay fines?
And companies that don't offer insurance to employees have to pay fines, with exceptions for small business and a few other cases. The national health care reform law also made several changes to Medicare, which makes up roughly 12 percent of the federal budget.
What percentage of hospitals will be affected by Obamacare cuts?
The Obama administration's own Medicare actuary, Richard Foster, has explained that the Obamacare Medicare cuts could make unprofitable 15 percent of hospitals serving Medicare patients.
Why did Medicare cut the Medicare Advantage rate?
The rationale for cutting Medicare Advantage’s rates is that, prior to Obamacare, the government paid $1.14 per retiree in an MA plan, vs. $1.00 per retiree in a traditional plan. President Obama has called these differences “unwarranted subsidies [that] pad [private insurers’] profits but don’t improve the care of seniors.”
Why did Ryan cut Medicare?
The first is that Ryan’s Medicare cuts were solely used to extend the solvency of the Medicare trust fund, and not to fund new spending elsewhere. By contrast, Obamacare cut $716 billion from Medicare in order to fund $1.9 trillion in new health care spending, through the law’s expansion of Medicaid and its new subsidized exchanges.
How much does Medicare increase heart attacks?
Sarah Kliff cited a study yesterday that showed that every $1,000 that a hospital lost in Medicare reimbursements was associated with a 6-8 percent increase in mortality rates from heart attacks. John Goodman pointed out in the Wall Street Journal that Obamacare’s coverage expansion will not be accompanied by an increase in the supply of doctors, which will lead doctors to focus their time on the privately-insured patients who pay them the best.
Why is Romney's plan for Medicare worse?
Defense #4. The Romney plan for Medicare is worse, because it would shift costs to seniors
What is the $6,400 myth?
UPDATE 4: The Wall Street Journal demolishes the "$6,400 myth" that the Romney plan would force seniors to pay more for their health care. "Merely because [Obama] keeps repeating this doesn't mean it's in the same area code of accurate," the editors write.
What is Ryan plan 2011?
The 2011 version of the Ryan plan required that those younger than 55 enroll, upon retirement, in privately-run Medicare plans. These future retirees would be able to choose among a menu of plans, and would get a fixed amount of “premium support” with which to choose among those plans. Because the amount of premiums support would increase at the rate of inflation, whereas health-care costs have historically grown at a faster rate, critics have worried that these trends, if continued into the future, would expose seniors to higher health-care costs out-of-pocket.
How much was Medicare robbed to pay for Obamacare?
Was Medicare Robbed $700 Billion to Pay for Obamacare? When talking about his plans for Social Security and Medicare, Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) stated that Congress should not be “talking about getting rid of Social Security and Medicare that was robbed $700 billion dollars to pay for Obamacare.”.
How much did the Affordable Care Act save?
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) enacted savings estimated at that time of $716 billion to the Medicare program over ten years ( now estimated at $800 billion), which was used to pay for some of the cost of the new law under pay-as-you-go budget scoring conventions.
How long will Medicare be solvent?
Partially as a result these changes, the Medicare Trust Fund is expected to be solvent through 2030, 13 years longer than projected before the 2010 law was passed.
Did Medicare reduce payroll taxes?
However, there was no reduction in the amount of money going towards paying for Medicare; rather, the law reduced the amount that Medicare spends. In fact, Medicare payroll tax revenues increased, increasing the amount that could be spent.
How much money was robbed from Medicare to fund Obamacare?
Huckabee said, "$700 billion was robbed (from Medicare) to fund Obamacare.". It’s an old claim and an old figure. The law does reduce Medicare spending, but not in the way Huckabee suggests.
Why did private insurers run Medicare?
Under President George W. Bush, private insurers began to run a subset of Medicare plans with the idea that more competition produced lower costs. However, those plans grew to cost more than traditional Medicare, so the Affordable Care Act pared down the payments to private insurers.
Can Medicare beneficiaries have additional costs?
It’s possible that some beneficiaries could experience additional costs, reductions in service, or fewer hospitals that accept Medicare.
Who was the governor of New Jersey who defended his plan to raise the retirement age and change benefits for Social Security and?
Huckabee's provocative comment concluded a wonkish back-and-forth between him and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie about entitlement reform. Christie defended his plan to raise the retirement age and change benefits for Social Security and Medicare, but Huckabee stressed that Uncle Sam was to blame.
Does Obamacare rob Medicare?
Obamacare doesn’t literally "rob" Medicare. But the Affordable Care Act does include provisions that reduce future increases in Medicare spending. In other words, the law slows down the rising costs of Medicare. It’s also important to note that the savings come at the expense of insurers and hospitals, not beneficiaries.
How does Obamacare help people?
In many ways, the Affordable Care Act improves the standard of care that those with insurance receive. And, it helps to prevent the spread of diseases and other medical conditions to people without insurance. Medicare beneficiaries, in particular, gain valuable advantages, like being able to afford brand name prescription drugs or getting yearly colonoscopies to detect early forms of cancer. Obamacare seeks to help people stay healthier for longer by making better coverage an affordable option; this goal extends to Medicare beneficiaries. And despite the emphasis on better medical treatments and prevention, the new standard of healthcare doesn’t affect how you sign up for or receive your Medicare benefits.
How much does Medicare Part A cost?
The individual threshold for standard Part B premiums is $85,000 per year. This means that if you earn less than that then you will only have to pay the standard premium of $135.50 per month for Part B coverage, in 2019. If you earn more than $85,000 per year as an individual, then you’ll pay a higher percentage.
How does Medicare donut hole work?
How does the cost assistance work? Essentially, Medicare will now pay for about half the cost of brand name prescription drugs for people in the donut hole. Each year, the amount that you have to pay for prescriptions while you’re in the coverage gap will decrease. By 2020, the Medicare donut hole will be closed for all intents and purposes. In fact, the donut hole has closed for brand name drugs as of 2019, a full year earlier than anticipated. The gap for generics is still slated to close in 2020. Here’s an example of how this will work:
What are the benefits of Medicare under the ACA?
One of the benefits included under minimum essential coverage is the ability to see your doctor for yearly screenings and wellness checkups.
What is the Medicare Part D spending limit for 2019?
Here, she’ll have to wait until she reaches the spending limit for the year. For 2019, the out-of-pocket spending limit for Medicare Part D is $5,100 ; in 2018, it was $5,000.
What is a Medicare Part D coverage gap?
If you have Medicare Part D prescription coverage, then you may be familiar with the concept of the coverage gap or “donut hole.” The coverage gap happens when a person reaches the limit for covered prescriptions, but has to wait until he gets to the other side of the “donut” or coverage period to get covered prescriptions again.
Will Medicare premiums increase?
For some Medicare beneficiaries, the cost of coverage will increase according to need. However, Medicare premiums are not expected to rise significantly as a result of the Affordable Care Act. You will probably find that you pay the same amount for your health insurance as you did prior to the implementation of Obamacare. As mentioned above, we’ll discuss the change in premiums in a later section.
Why did Obamacare cut Medicare?
(Photo credit: Wikipedia) As you know if you’ve been reading this blog, Obamacare cuts $716 billion from Medicare in order to pay for its $1.9 trillion expansion of coverage to low-income Americans. It’s one of the reasons why seniors are more opposed to the new health law than any other age group.
How much did Obamacare save the AARP?
Obamacare, on the other hand, saved the AARP from $1.8 billion in Medigap reforms, while potentially earning the group an additional $1 billion in royalties from seniors who are forced out of Medicare Advantage. That’s a swing of $2.8 billion over ten years, all thanks to Obamacare. "There's an inherent conflict of interest," says Marylin Moon, ...
What is a Medigap plan?
Medigap plans are private insurance plans that seniors buy to cover the things that traditional, government-run Medicare doesn’t, like catastrophic coverage. Medigap plans also help seniors eliminate the co-pays and deductibles that are designed to restrain wasteful Medicare spending.
Why do Democrats excoriate private insurers?
Democrats routinely excoriate private insurers for supposedly putting profits above people. "No American should ever spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies," President Obama told the AARP yesterday. But the typical private insurer gets by on a profit margin of about 5 to 6 percent.
Did Paul Ryan talk to Obamacare?
This week, the AARP hosted a convention in New Orleans, at which President Obama and Paul Ryan spoke about Obamacare and Medicare. When Rep. Ryan spoke to the AARP about the importance of repealing Obamacare, he was booed. Small wonder, given the AARP’s extreme financial interest in the law. According to DeMint, during the Obamacare debate in Congress, the AARP’s phone logs from seniors registered more than 50 to 1 against the law.
Is AARP exempt from premium tax?
AARP plans are exempt from the premium tax levied on other private insurers. IPAB, Medicare’s rationing board, is explicitly barred from altering Medicare’s cost-sharing provisions, provisions that govern the existence of Medigap plans.
Is AARP exempt from Obamacare?
It gets worse. AARP Medigap plans are exempted from most of Obamacare’s best-known insurance mandates. AARP Medigap plans are exempted from the ban that requires insurers to take all comers, regardless of pre-existing conditions. The plans are exempted from the $500,000 cap on insurance industry executive compensation; top AARP executives currently make more than $1 million. AARP plans are exempt from the premium tax levied on other private insurers. IPAB, Medicare’s rationing board, is explicitly barred from altering Medicare’s cost-sharing provisions, provisions that govern the existence of Medigap plans.
