In recent weeks, liberal politicians, editorialists, and policy analysts have vigorously attacked reform of Medicare based on a defined contribution financing. In fact, this approach to reforming Medicare has a long bipartisan tradition, going back to the 1980s and Representatives Richard Gephardt (D–MO) and David Stockman (R–MI). In fact, much …
Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Kathleen Sebelius has misled the American public again. HHS just announced that enrollment in Medicare Advantage (MA) is projected to increase by 11 percent next year. That’s good news. But the Secretary goes terribly wrong when she credits the increase to Obamacare, stating, …
Recently, economist Paul Krugman derided the premium support plan to reform Medicare: Still, wouldn’t private insurers reduce costs through the magic of the marketplace? No. All, and I mean all, the evidence says that public systems like Medicare and Medicaid, which have less bureaucracy than private insurers (if you can’t …
Medicare is getting quite a bit of attention lately. And rightly so. Out-of-control entitlement spending contributes directly to long-term federal deficits, which will accelerate over the course of the next few decades, according to Heritage’s Federal Budget in Pictures and figures provided by the Congressional Budget Office. By 2030, Medicare …
Entering the final stretch of the presidential contest, Americans are facing a monumental choice. The American people will decide the direction of government and its role in their lives for the coming years. The debate in Tampa this week raised a number of issues, including preserving the American dream of …
The rhetorical Medicare wars have heated up this week, after President Obama declared in his Saturday radio address that his proposed reforms “won’t touch your guaranteed Medicare benefits. Not by a single dime.” This is incorrect. Obamacare cuts $716 billion from Medicare over the next 10 years, according to the …
The looming unsustainability of the big three entitlement spending programs—Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security—is not inevitable, but in order to avoid the catastrophic effects of consuming every bit of tax revenue in just one generation, reform is a necessity. Take a look at Medicare, the largest portion of the projected …
In a recent paper, Heritage expert Bob Moffit responds to the critics of the premium-support model for Medicare. This type of reform would give seniors a defined government contribution toward the cost of a Medicare plan of their choice. All plans would compete against each other to deliver market-based prices …
