Medicare Blog

why are "people" upset with medicare "cuts" when we have no idea what is being cut?

by Alana Lindgren Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago

How much will the Medicare cuts cost?

But $269 billion of that figure is reclassified under the Department of Health and Human Services, bringing the Medicare cuts to $575 billion. As Vox explained, the administration says it will achieve these cost reductions by targeting wasteful spending and provider payments and lowering prescription drug costs.

Why are hospitals losing money on medicare care?

If hospitals do not aggressively manage the cost of caring for Medicare patients against these fixed payments, losses result.

Will Medicare be cut during a recession?

The fact that Medicare is the largest single federal domestic program means that further cuts in Medicare payment are a virtual certainty when, not if, the federal budget deficit is driven higher by recessions.

Is the White House cutting Medicare in its budget?

When it comes to Medicare, the White House has been very clear: “He’s not cutting Medicare in this budget,” Vought said. “What we are doing is putting forward reforms that lower drug prices. Because Medicare pays a very large [share] of drug prices in this country, [that] has the impact of finding savings.

Why is the AARP against the Trust Act?

AARP opposes TRUST Act Under the act, lawmakers would be unable to make any changes to a TRUST Act bill once it went to the U.S. House of Representatives or the Senate. “Older Americans overwhelmingly oppose cutting Social Security and Medicare to reduce the deficit.

What issues AARP oppose?

9 Reasons Not to JoinYou Oppose Socialized Medicine. ... You Oppose Regionalism. ... You Oppose Government “Safety Nets” ... You Don't Believe in Climate Change. ... You Oppose Mail-in Voting. ... You Oppose Forced Viral Testing, Masking, or Social Distancing. ... You Do Not Like Contact Tracing. ... You Do Not Like AARP's Barrage of Political Emails.More items...•

What are Medicare payment cuts?

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed cutting Medicare's physician payment rates by 3.75% next year. This would be on top of other scheduled cuts and add up to a 9.75% payment reduction for 2022.

What legislation does AARP support?

Critical financial relief AARP championed stimulus checks and pushed Treasury to make automatic deposits for as many eligible people in as many programs as possible. We advocated successfully for higher subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.

Is AARP membership declining?

Similar to most other civic-minded service organizations, AARP chapters are declining in numbers due to lack of members. New, younger members are not replacing enough older members. It's a common and growing problem with these groups.

What is the conservative alternative to AARP?

AMACAMAC is a membership organization for people age 50 and over. The group calls itself "the conservative alternative to the AARP." It is one of several organizations to position itself as conservative rivals to the AARP; others include the American Seniors Association and 60 Plus Association.

Is Congress trying to cut Medicare Advantage?

Most of Congress warns CMS against any Medicare Advantage cuts, calls for benefit flexibility. A large swath of House and Senate lawmakers is pushing the Biden administration not to install any cuts to Medicare Advantage (MA) plans in the coming 2023 rates.

Is Congress cutting Medicare benefits?

The bill also reduces the 2% Medicare sequester to 1% from April through June. We will continue to work with Congress to ensure that providers and the patients they care for are not under continued duress as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when that cut is scheduled to take effect.

What are the Medicare cuts coming in 2022?

Audiologists and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) providing Medicare Part B (outpatient) services paid under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) should prepare for a 1% cut on all claims to go into effect for services provided on or after April 1, 2022.

Is Medicare in the build back better bill?

Among other adjustments, the BBBA would significantly improve Medicaid coverage and provide Medicare hearing care coverage for the first time. It also would reduce drug prices and cost sharing.

Is Medicare in the build back better plan?

The Build Back Better plan looks to add hearing coverage to Medicare starting in 2023. New coverage under the plan would include hearing aids for enrollees with moderately severe to profound hearing loss, hearing treatment, and rehabilitation by qualified audiologists.

Who is AARP owned by?

the American Seniors Association Holding Group, IncNannis also stated that the AARP gained 400,000 members and that 1.5 million members renewed their memberships within the same period of time. The American Seniors Association is a for-profit organization operated by the American Seniors Association Holding Group, Inc (ASAHG, Inc).

How much is Medicare cut?

But $269 billion of that figure is reclassified under the Department of Health and Human Services, bringing the Medicare cuts to $575 billion. As Vox explained, the administration says it will achieve these cost reductions by targeting wasteful spending and provider payments and lowering prescription drug costs.

What are the changes to Medicaid and Social Security?

But when it comes to Trump’s proposed changes to Medicaid and Social Security, the intent is unambiguous: These are cuts to benefits. The 2020 budget’s Medicaid reforms include adding work requirements and repealing Medicaid expansion and one of the most successful policies within the Affordable Care Act.

How much will the Social Security cut?

In all, the cuts to Social Security amount to $25 billion over the next 10 years, cutting roughly $10 billion from the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program, which the administration says will be found through cutting down on fraud — a common conservative talking point.

How much will Trump spend on Medicaid in 2020?

Over the next 10 years, Trump’s 2020 budget proposal aims to spend $1.5 trillion less on Medicaid — instead allocating $1.2 trillion in a block-grant program to states — $25 billion less on Social Security, and $845 billion less on Medicare (some of that is reclassified to a different department). Their intentions are to cut benefits ...

Will Trump cut Medicare?

President Donald Trump’s 2020 budget breaks one of his biggest campaign promises to voters: that he would leave Medicaid, Social Security, and Medicare untouched. “I’m not going to cut Social Security like every other Republican and I’m not going to cut Medicare or Medicaid,” Trump told the Daily Signal, a conservative publication affiliated ...

Does Medicare Part D raise out of pocket costs?

Medicare Part D is the only area of these reforms that could raise out-of-pocket drug prices for some while lowering it for others. Otherwise, premiums, deductibles, and copays would largely be left unaffected. Unsurprisingly, the Federation of American Hospitals is not a fan of this part of Trump’s budget proposal.

How many people will be on Medicare in 2030?

By 2030, there will be 81.5 million Medicare beneficiaries vs. 55 million today.

How many hospitals lost money in 2016?

About three-fourths of short-term acute-care hospitals lost money treating Medicare patients in 2016, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC), an independent agency established to advise the U.S. Congress on issues affecting the Medicare program.

What is legacy Medicare?

Medicare’s legacy payment system places a premium on controlling labor and supply expenses and eliminating wasted or low-value imaging procedures and laboratory tests as well as minimizing operating-room time, intensive-care stays, and a host of other expensive services.

Does Medicare cover DRG?

Medicare has been exploring how to expand the scope of the DRG system to include the physician fees incurred in treating patients as well as some post-acute (i.e., after hospitalization) costs, making control of episode costs even more important.

Is Medicare the largest federal program?

The fact that Medicare is the largest single federal domestic program means that further cuts in Medicare payment are a virtual certainty when, not if, the federal budget deficit is driven higher by recessions. What this means for hospitals is crystal clear: Unless their losses from treating Medicare patients can be contained, ...

Why is Medicaid expansion bad?

12 Reasons Why Medicaid Expansion Is A Terrible Idea. More than four years after the president signed his signature health care initiative, the Affordable Care Act, into law, many states are still struggling to navigate it. A key issue still facing states is whether to expand Medicaid and increase the pool of residents eligible to join the program.

How much does Medicaid expansion reduce private coverage?

One of the architects of Obamacare, Jonathan Gruber (who also coauthored that Oregon Medicaid study), estimates that Medicaid expansions can reduce private coverage by 60 percent. A RAND study also found that of 60 percent of Medicaid expansion is just replacing coverage ...

Why was Medicaid created?

Medicaid was created to give low-income families access to quality care —it was never meant to be a replacement for private coverage of people who can afford it. 7. Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion is financed with $1 trillion in tax hikes and $700 billion in cuts to Medicare.

How is Obamacare paid for?

Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion is paid for through a combination of tax increases and cuts to Medicare. The program doesn’t work like a typical discretionary program, where a fixed amount is appropriated regardless of program utilization. Medicaid’s cost increases are tied directly to enrollment.

Does Medicaid cover physical health?

This randomized, controlled study showed that Medicaid coverage generated no significant improvements in measured physical health outcomes in the first 2 years. 2. Medicaid promises people health coverage, but often denies them access to quality doctors.

Does Medicaid improve health?

1. Medicaid doesn’t actually improve health outcomes. According to an extensive, randomized study of people who enrolled in Oregon’s 2008 Medicaid lottery, Medicaid doesn’t improve the health outcomes of its patients, even after controlling for major health predictors like income and pre-existing health status.

Is Obamacare repeal harder than Medicaid?

Obamacare repeal becomes harder and harder as more people pile into Medicaid. This is likely one of the few areas of agreement between Obamacare’s boosters and its opponents. It’s one reason why the president has pushed governors and state legislatures to adopt Medicaid expansion.

Unpopular But Effective

Four Reasons ‘Mediscare’ Worked

  • So, why was the Mediscare campaign so effective? First, it played to an existing belief. Advertising works best when it plays to people’s existing biases or beliefs. Opinion polls regularly report that voters believe Coalition governments are more likely to cut health services or privatise an area of government activity. Voters, at least, were pred...
See more on theconversation.com

The Liberal Party’S Complicity

  • The Liberal Party was also complicit in the Mediscare campaign’s success. It let the campaign run for far too long before responding to it. The claim that the campaign was cooked up in the last two weeks of the election race is a furphy. Anybody who was close to the campaign – Labor, Coalition and Green – knew it was coming. The ACTU launched its campaignin February. Labor’…
See more on theconversation.com

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