From: Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom
- Medicare
is essentially compulsory. People
who refuse to join Medicare Part A are not allowed to receive their earned
Social Security benefits. Brian Hall, et al. v. Kathleen Sebelius,
et al, was filed October 9, 2008 and appealed in July 2011. On
June 30, 2011, U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint and 12 GOP colleagues introduced the
Retirement Freedom Act to decouple Medicare from Social Security.
- Medicare
patients cannot pay cash for care. A 1997
law (Balanced Budget Act, section 4507) forbids private contracts between
patients and doctors. With few exceptions, Medicare recipients cannot pay
cash for a Medicare-covered service that Medicare denies until the doctor
has opted out of Medicare. Most physicians cannot afford to opt out, so
the law essentially prohibits private contracting between elderly patients
and their doctors. Obamacare cut $500 billion from Medicare and enacted
two administrative panels that are expected to advance rationing: the
Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB) and the Patient-Centered
Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI).
- Initial
refusal to enroll in Medicare Part B leads to costly penalties.
Seniors are automatically enrolled in Medicare Part B. Those who refuse
and later change their minds will pay a premium for the rest of their
lives that is 10 percent higher for EACH year they were not enrolled.
- Citizens
do not have a right to their Medicare contributions (payroll taxes).
There is no binding contract between the government and citizens for
future payment of Medicare benefits. Congress can alter or eliminate
Medicare benefits at their discretion.
- Medicare
comes in four parts. Medicare Part A
(hospitalization insurance) is funded through payroll taxes. Obamacare
increased the payroll tax for individuals earning more than $200,000 and
couples earning more than $250,000. In 2006, Medicare Part B (supplemental
medical insurance for physician services, diagnostic tests, and other
services) was funded approximately 76 percent by federal income taxes and
21 percent by Medicare recipients. Under Medicare Part C, the Medicare
Advantage HMO managed care plan, insurers receive approximately $800 per
month per Medicare enrollee. Medicare Part D allows senior citizens to
receive subsidized drug coverage.
- Medicare
dependency is growing. In 2003, there were 40
million Medicare recipients. In 2010, there were 47.5 million recipients.
In 2011, the first of 77 million baby boomers began entering Medicare.
- Medicare
faces insufficient funding. In
1965, 4.6
workers/taxpayers supported each
Medicare recipient. In 2003, around 4 workers supported each recipient. In
2010, there were less than three workers per retiree. In 2030, only 2.3
workers/taxpayer are estimated per Medicare recipient. Medicare is
expected to grow from 3.6% to 6.2% of GDP.
- Medicare
is heading toward bankruptcy.
According to the Medicare Trustees 2011 report, Medicare will be insolvent
by 2024-five years earlier than estimated in 2010. Each new Medicare
beneficiary is expected to cost $7,700 per year and "the total cost
of the program to expand to $929 billion in 2010-an 80% increase over 10
years." (American Health Line blog, 12/30/2010)
- Medicare
is not health insurance.
Medicare does not pay for hospitalization longer than 150 days, and there
is no cap on out-of-pocket expenses. "Medigap" insurance is
often purchased to protect against huge medical bills not covered by
Medicare.
- Medicare
does not cover the cost of long-term care and nursing home care -
unless it is related to a hospitalization or other urgent medical care.
- Medicare
pays only about half of all health care costs of seniors.
In 1997, 39,840 seniors paid an average of $22,124, either in out of
pocket costs or through supplemental insurance.
- Medicare
frequently denies payment. In
2001, 3.7 million appeals were filed for denial of payment by Medicare
Part B. Despite a 2000 law requiring swift processing of appeals, a 2003
report by the General Accounting Office found significant delays in
appeals processing.
- Medicare
has not significantly decreased out of pocket payments for seniors.
In 2000, a study by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
found seniors paying an average of $2,510 per year-about 19 percent of
their income-on out-of-pocket costs. This does not include home care or
nursing home care. In 1964, a year before Medicare passed, seniors were
paying 20 percent of their income on health care.
- Medicare
wastes taxpayer money. Almost $107 billion in
improper payments were paid between 1997 and 2003. In 2002, $13.3 billion
was lost to improper payment. In 2010, $47.9 billion was improperly paid
(HealthLeaders, 7/29/11). CCHF calculates the 2010 loss at $131 million
per day.
- Doctors,
hospitals and others who accept Medicare patients are at enormous risk.
There are over 130,000 pages of Medicare regulations that must be
meticulously followed. In 1996, Congress made health care fraud a federal
crime-a felony. Even minor billing errors can be considered fraud and
extrapolated across the practice. Obamacare increased fines per violation
from $10,000 to $50,000.
- Medicare
threatens patient privacy. The
federal government requires home health agencies to regularly send private
data on Medicare recipients. This is called the Outcomes Assessment
Information System (OASIS). Obamacare requires extensive reporting by
doctors and hospital on patient treatments and outcomes. And, doctors and
hospitals that make inadvertent errors in billing can be forced to hand
over the patient’s entire medical record for investigation of fraud.
- Medicare
dollars used beyond patient care.
Medicare dollars fund medical education, and a research institute (PCORI) created
under Obamacare, leaving fewer dollars for treating the tsunami of
Medicare recipients. In 2008, Medicare paid $9.0 billion to train doctors.
Information taken liberally from Medicare's
Midlife Crisis (Sue Blevins, Institute for Health Freedom, published
by Cato Institute); GAO REPORT: "Medicare Appeals: Disparity
between Requirements and Responsible Agencies' Capabilities" (September
2003); The Medicare Program as a Capstone to the Great Society-Recent
Revelations in the LBJ White House Tapes (Larry DeWitt, May
2003); Kaiser Family Foundation documents; testimony to Congress (House
Budget Committee) from the Office of Inspector General (July 9, 2003);
Americans for Tax Reform; the 2010 Affordable Care Act; "Economic Report
of the President" (St. Louis Federal Reserve, 2007), and other sources.
Updated: August 1, 2011
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