Medicare/Medicaid

As we continue to discuss options for solving the debt crisis in Washington, Medicare and Medicaid have become a hot button issue.  That’s because Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security are the largest drivers of our debt. In order to save these programs from bankruptcy – Medicare is scheduled to go bankrupt in 2021 – we must reform them.  Under Congressman Ryan’s Path to Prosperity budget we can do just that, without making any program changes for those near retirement.  

Medicare

Medicare is a federal government program that provides health care coverage to those Americans over age 55.  

It is important, among so many rumors about Medicare,  that people realize the Path to Prosperity includes no changes to Medicare for those 55 years of age and older. The Path to Prosperity will absolutely preserve those promises that Congress has made to individuals near retirement. For those under 55, the plan strengthens the Medicare program by allowing benefits to be personalized with guaranteed coverage. Beginning in 2022, we will see costs lowered and more options available because beneficiaries will be able to choose from several competing plans required offering Medicare coverage. It is competition of these providers that will be the greatest cost control. There will be no “one size fits all” decisions punishing beneficiaries by making across-the-board cuts to providers.

While Obamacare raided the funds of Medicare for more entitlements, the Path to Prosperity is the only serious plan that actually saves Medicare.  While Congressional Democrats and the White House prefer massive tax increases, large benefit cuts and expanding bureaucracy into your medical needs, House Republicans have put forth real common-sense solutions with the Path to Prosperity.

For a summary of the FY 2012 Path to Prosperity budget, visit http://1.usa.gov/hY11sX.

To learn more about Medicare, determine if you’re eligible, or to learn how to apply, please visit www.medicare.gov.

Medicaid
Medicaid is a program administered by the states, but jointly funded by the federal government and the states.  It provides health care for those Americans who fall below a certain income level.

If ObamaCare is enacted, it would bring millions of Americans in under its umbrella and the Congressional Budget Committee anticipates it would cost – by itself - $430 billion over the next ten years.  That’s a whopping price tag for a country with more than $15 trillion in debt.  Under the Path to Prosperity, House Republicans would re-tool the Medicaid program so that federal money is given to states in a lump sum.  This encourages states to find savings on their own and end the one-size-fits-all approach where a nameless, faceless federal bureaucrat determining which programs and people deserve it the most.

Whether we like it or not, we have got to tighten our belts in Washington.  And no agency or program is going to be immune from that.  But there are changes we can make that will save programs like Medicaid and preserve it for future generations without dramatically altering the benefits.

If you have questions about Medicaid in Georgia, please visit the Georgia Department of Community Health.  There you can learn the basics of Medicaid, determine if you’re eligible, and learn how to apply.

If you have any questions about these issues, you can contact Amber Porter in my Washington, D.C. office at 202-225-5901 or you can email me.

If you need help with your Medicare/Medicaid, please contact Kathy Pappas in my Newnan office at 770-683-2033 or you can email me.