Tell Congress: No cuts to Medicare or Medicaid

[babsbunny]

http://democracyforamerica.com/activities/668-tell-congress-no-cuts-to-medicare-or-medicaid?akid=1466.1246370.MHfYvQ&rd=1&t=2

This plan to cut Medicare is exactly the opposite of what Democrats should stand for. This plan protects the status quo for the 1% while the 99% are expected to sacrifice vital healthcare.

I will oppose any candidate -- Republican or Democrat -- who votes for a plan that cuts Medicare or Medicaid benefits.

[jtown1123]

1. Seconded! www.saynocuts.org n/t

[lob1]

2. Done. K&R.

[Ship of Fools]

3. Done. Wish there was a spot for comments. I always like to let them know the same.

[cbayer]

4. Question for you.

There are tremendous opportunities for savings in the Medicare system. It is overall very poorly managed with much fraud/abuse, waste and expenditures that offer no tangible benefits to recipients.

If cuts to Medicare were to target the problem areas without cutting benefits that are known to provide quality healthcare or raising premiums for recipients, would that be acceptable?

I think reforming medicare is essential, particularly if we want it to be the model and eventual vehicle for single payer, universally accessible healthcare. I think making the distinction between cost saving reforms and and simply cutting benefits is an important one to make.

What do you think?

[MadrasT]

5. +1

[indepat]

6. Question: cannot fraud, waste, and abuse be targeted outside the budgeting process?

I think, I know, that no one who votes to cut Medicare or Social Security as a part of the grand bargain in which Speaker Boehner said he got 98% of what he wanted will ever get my vote, be it for Congress, for the Senate, or for the Presidency. EOS. No exceptions. Ask no quarter, give no quarter. :patriot:

[cbayer]

7. It is being targeted by the current administrator of CMS, and he is

doing an excellent job.

Since he is beginning to show significant progress in the areas that need reform and is already saving significant amounts of money, why not allow for some adjustments in the budget that recognize this?

My concern is that there is not necessarily a need to take a rock hard stand on no cuts to the Medicare budget. Once the system can be shown to be effective, provide quality care, reduce budgetary costs and move towards being budget neutral, our chances of moving towards a single payer system are greatly improved. And if putting the right kinds of cuts on the table gets us our tax increases on the wealthiest, that's a win.

[indepat]

8. Eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse is neither a cut in benefits, nor loss of a service or loss of

access to a provider, nor an additional cost for service imo. To tell me the impending cuts will not affect any of these would be most comforting. :patriot: