Obama's Health Care Cuts Spread the Pain

[steve2470]

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/obamas-health-care-cuts-spread-pain-14561351

Health care savings in President Barack Obama's deficit-reduction plan would squeeze future Medicare recipients, cut payments to drug companies and hospitals, and shift costs to states.

Still, some advocates say the president's approach is less painful than other major ideas being debated this year, from privatizing Medicare to letting the states run Medicaid without a federal guarantee that the poor would get needed care.

"This is a question of 'compared to what?'" said John Rother, president of the National Coalition on Health Care, a research and advocacy group. "I would describe this as an attempt to spread the pain pretty broadly. While it does hit Medicare beneficiaries, it's better than most of the alternatives we've seen thus far, which would involve bigger hits."

Obama did promise Medicare beneficiaries that he'd veto any legislation asking them to sacrifice without also raising taxes on upper-income earners. But he didn't issue them a complete pass.

[Lasher]

1. I didn't think we of the underclass needed any more pain spread to us.

It's the wealthy who are not feeling the pain. Spread some to them and leave Medicare alone.

[bowens43]

2. Obama , working diligently to destroy the middle class and poor

this guy has been a complete disaster....

[daa]

3. Vote for me I cut Medicare less than they WOULD have nt