See more
What is Paul Ryan's new budget proposal?
Nothing new. Paul Ryan’s “new” budget proposal recycles ideas that will harm older people, people with disabilities, families and Medicare. It is a plan about a governing philosophy , not about saving money, preserving Medicare, or reducing the national deficit.
What is the Center for Medicare Advocacy?
The Center for Medicare Advocacy has long offered real solutions to ensure Medicare’s solvency, without shifting costs to beneficiaries or leaving them on their own to negotiate with private insurance companies. The Center’s solutions would save billions of dollars, help beneficiaries, and maintain the integrity of the Medicare program. Here’s what we suggest:
Is there a drug benefit for Medicare?
Offering a drug benefit in traditional Medicare would give beneficiaries a choice they do not have, encourage people to stay in traditional Medicare rather than joining more expensive private plans, and save money for Medicare and taxpayers .
Can people over 65 not be on Medicare?
People between 55 and 65 who are not disabled are currently unable to enroll in Medicare. Lowering the age of eligibility to also enroll this younger population would add revenue to Medicare from people who generally cost less, as they need less health care than older beneficiaries.
Did Wyden endorse Ryan's Medicare plan?
No. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., did not endorse Ryan’s Medicare plan in the last House budget resolution. It is similar to a plan that the two wrote together last year, but there is an important difference. The limit on federal spending per beneficiary was not as strict in the plan they wrote together: The two had placed the cap at GDP growth rate plus 1 percent. Also, no other Democrat supported their 2011 proposal.
Does Obama want to limit Medicare spending?
During budget deficit reduction negotiations in Washington, Obama proposed holding Medicare spending to half a percentage point higher than the growth rate of the economy. Ryan later adopted the same cap.
