Late last month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) directed Medicare Advantage (MA) plans to discontinue any communications with their enrollees about the potential impact on beneficiaries of health reform proposals – paid for with massive cuts to the MA program.  According to CMS, those communications were “misleading and confusing.” Below are five statements about… Read more

President Obama and Congressional Democrats have repeatedly pledged to the American public that health care reform will not lead to rationing of health care services.  However, sometime after the bill was originally unveiled, House Democrats removed the prohibition on rationing care from the duties of the Health Benefits Advisory Committee, a government board tasked with recommending the… Read more

Despite President Obama’s claims to the contrary on Sunday morning news programs, he and Congressional Democrats are proposing massive cuts to Medicare, which will reduce benefits and options that improve the quality of care for seniors.  As previously detailed, a total of 6 million seniors will be denied access to an affordable Medicare Advantage (MA) plan because of H.R. 3200, including… Read more

Democrats have repeatedly pledged H.R. 3200 will expand insurance options and preserve Americans’ ability to keep the insurance they have and like.  However, as previously detailed, a total of 6 million seniors will be denied access to an affordable Medicare Advantage (MA) plan because of H.R. 3200, including 3 million seniors who will lose the plan they currently have.  According to a… Read more

Democrats have repeatedly pledged H.R. 3200 will expand insurance options and preserve Americans’ ability to keep the insurance they have and like.  However, the language in H.R. 3200 doesn’t support this empty rhetoric. Today, 11 million seniors, or 22% of all Medicare beneficiaries, are enrolled in a Medicare health plan, called Medicare Advantage.  Under current law, the… Read more

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the House Democrat health care bill (H.R. 3200) would force seniors to pay an additional 20 percent more for their Medicare prescription drug coverage (Part D).  Under H.R. 3200, seniors would pay 5 percent more in Part D premiums in 2011, increasing to 20 percent by 2019.    Background H.R. 3200 includes three significant changes… Read more

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) yesterday announced lower than expected average premiums in the Medicare prescription drug benefit (also known as Part D) next year.  Average monthly premiums will be $30 in 2010, just a $2 increase over this year.  This market-based benefit has always been under budget, costing seniors and the American taxpayers less than predicted.… Read more

In his health care town hall meeting yesterday, the President was asked by an audience member, “who can compete with the government?”  The President responded: “I think private insurers should be able to compete. They do it all the time. I mean, if you think about -- if you think about it, UPS and FedEx are doing just fine, right? No, they are. It's the Post Office that's always having… Read more

As Members of Congress prepare to head back to their districts for the month of August, without having voted on a health care reform bill, it is a fitting time to summarize the state of the debate. According to the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC poll, more Americans believe the President’s health plan is a bad idea (42 percent) than a good idea (36 percent).  A New York Times/CBS poll… Read more

President Obama¸ when speaking before the American Medical Association (AMA), stated: “I understand some doctors may feel the need to order more tests and treatments to avoid being legally vulnerable. That's a real issue…I want to work with the AMA so we can scale back the excessive defensive medicine that reinforces our current system, and shift to a system where we are providing… Read more