So higher costs for seniors and more money for private insurers...Wow Paul Ryan's plan is Genius!

[jtown1123]

Excerpt from NCPSSM Blog Post:

More Money for Insurers, Higher Costs for Seniors in Medicare and the Government…Sound Sensible to You?

By NCPSSM | May 24, 2011

“Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other top Democrats want to put Senate Republicans on the record voting for — or against — the Ryan proposal to turn Medicare into a voucher program for seniors. Already, a few moderate Republicans — the latest being Sens. Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — have bailed on it or look ready to jump.”

Politico has a good description of the political pretzel Republicans have created for themselves by opposing efforts to reduce healthcare costs in the Affordable Care Act while at the same time supporting the destruction of Medicare as we know it as “sensible”.

“Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said he’ll vote for the Ryan budget, adding during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” that the Medicare voucher plan is a “very sensible way to go to try to save Medicare.”

The Senate will vote on the Ryan/GOP Budget plan this week; however, it is clear GOP Senators are not enthused about this vote. No wonder. Americans understand that replacing a guaranteed health benefit in Medicare with the GOP/Ryan Couponcare plan is anything but “sensible”. Turning Medicare over to private insurers who will charge more to cover less is not “sensible”. And while putting private insurance companies in control of seniors’ healthcare will certainly be good for business it’s terrifying for retirees whose costs will double. While all of this happens… the government actually pays more.

The REST: http://www.ncpssm.org/entitledtoknow/?p=1758

[KansDem]

1. If privatized Medicare turns out like standard heath insurance...

31 cents of every dollar spent would go to "administrative costs."

PNHP Co-founders Drs. Steffie Woolhandler and David Himmelstein published this definitive study of the administrative costs of the U.S. health system in the August 21, 2003 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. After analyzing the costs of insurers, employers, doctors, hospitals, nursing homes and home-care agencies in both the U.S. and Canada, they found that administration consumes 31.0 percent of U.S. health spending, double the proportion of Canada (16.7 percent). Average overhead among private U.S. insurers was 11.7 percent, compared with 1.3 percent for Canada’s single-payer system and 3.6 percent for Medicare. Streamlined to Canadian levels, enough administrative waste could be saved to provide compressive health insurance to all Americans.

Physicians for a National Health Program

I don't want to give 31 cents for every dollar I spend to CEOs...

[jtown1123]

2. Agreed. Private insurance is clearly never the better option.

[dynasaw]

3. What Qualifies Paul Ryan

to be either Chair of the Budget Committee, or dictate the economic future of American?

As far as I have been able to look up on his biography, all he has is a B.A. in economics from Miami University, Ohio.

[jtown1123]

4. That's what so frightening about our lawmakers. Most are completely unqualified.

[SharonAnn]

5. Ryan's purpose is to enrich insurers, not get medical care to seniors.

Did anyone happen to notice that this plan came up AFTER the Health Care Reform act took away the 15% upcharge that they got for Medicare Advantage? They lost their extra, unearned profit!

So now, they're back and they want it all. ALL!