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For Immediate Release:  January 5, 1999
Contact: Rusty Jabour

Medicare Commission Continues Analyses;
Details Criteria for Medicare in the Next Millennium

WASHINGTON (January 5) – Members of the national Medicare commission today continued their analyses of possible reforms as they seek ways to strengthen and improve the $200 billion health care program that serves nearly 40 million seniors.

Commission Chairmen Senator John Breaux (D-LA) and Representative Bill Thomas (R-CA), said Medicare in the next millennium must:

• be there for beneficiaries
• adapt to a rapidly changing health care world
• provide modernized benefits
• be financially secure
• give beneficiaries choice of doctors and health plans
• be efficient

The chairmen said Medicare should be 1) responsive to the needs of beneficiaries, 2) cost-effective both for beneficiaries and taxpayers, 3) available for younger workers who expect a financially viable program when they retire, and 4) fair to providers.

The chairmen made the comments this afternoon at the first session of a two-day meeting of the 17-member National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare. Today, the Commissioners discussed Medicare’s eligibility age, reforms to the current Medicare fee-for-service program, and supplemental insurance, also known as "Medigap."

Tomorrow morning, the Commissioners will study side-by-side comparisons of four health care systems and discuss how those plans work. Two of the options, traditional Medicare fee-for-service and Medicare+Choice, are used by Medicare today. Two others, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) and the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), are examples of premium support, discussed as a possible model for Medicare in the future.

Proponents of the FEHBP and CalPERS plans note their ability to provide good benefits, manage costs and promote competition among participating health plans.

In recent weeks, the Commission has moved into a new phase of its year-long work, studying analyses, cost estimates and benefits packages for the Medicare program. The Commission is scheduled to report its recommendations to the Congress and the Administration by March 1.

The Balanced Budget Act of 1997, which also created the Medicare Commission, ensures solvency of the Medicare Part A trust fund for the next 10 years. But, without reform, the trust fund goes bankrupt in the year 2008. In addition, 77 million Baby Boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964) will begin entering Medicare in year year 2011 and will significantly increase the demand for its services.