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| Medicare, IRA Accounts and Signing the Baca |
July 25, 2000 |
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| Dear Friends,
Lots going on in Washington and Albuquerque this week!
Over 5,000 people in Albuquerque have been told that their Medicare Choice company will end their service at the end of the year. That worries a lot of seniors for good reason. While all of them will still be covered by traditional Medicare, it may mean changing their doctors and more out-of-pocket expense. A lot of folks had called my office, worried and unsure of their options. So, on Saturday, we had an information meeting at the Albuquerque Little Theater and brought in the federal Medicare person from Dallas to explain to people how this would work.
The most important thing is that people will still have Medicare, and the woman who came did have a lot of information for folks.
But New Mexicans are not being treated fairly under Medicare, and this week, I`m introducing a bill to try to fix it. We didn`t pay into Medicare based on where we live and New Mexicans shouldn`t be getting a fraction of the benefits Medicare pays than those in New York or Texas.
Last week, the House passed a version of the retirement savings bill that my colleagues and I have been working on. It`s a bipartisan bill that expands the amount people can put in their IRA`s from $2,000 to $5,000 a year and indexes it to inflation. I was very happy to see that passed and I hope the Senate acts quickly so that we can get this done this year.
And today, the President signed the bill authorizing the purchase of the Baca ranch. I`ve never been to a bill signing before and I was looking forward to it. Unfortunately, a friend of the President`s passed away and he made a quick trip to Arkansas for the funeral. We did get to go to the White House though. My son, who is with me in Washington this week, came with me. He thought the most memorable part of the visit was trying to catch the squirrels on the White House lawn. . . . That`s my boy!
Wish you were here,
Heather |
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