Privatize it! Just before recess, the Republicans filibustered (by one stinking vote) H.R. 6331- a less-than-perfect bill that did some good things, most notably taking on the boondoggle known as Medicare Advantage. Because the GOP believes that their job is to uphold and defend all industry sops foreign and domestic, they stopped the bill from advancing. The Center on Budget Policy and Priorities has an excellent explanation of the situation here. From it:
The high costs of Medicare Advantage — and of PFFS (private fee for service - eR) plans in particular — are creating a major fiscal dilemma for Medicare.
- Private insurance companies were brought into Medicare to lower costs. MedPAC has found that the private plans in general receive 13 percent more, on average, than it would cost traditional Medicare to cover the same people. Last year the Congressional Budget Office estimated that these additional payments will cost Medicare $149 billion over the next ten years. MedPAC has warned that these costs are weakening Medicare’s financial stability.
- PFFS plans play a large role here. They are the fastest growing type of Medicare Advantage plans and receive the largest overpayments. (MedPAC reports that it costs 17 percent more, on average, to cover a beneficiary under PFFS than under regular Medicare.) MedPAC also reports that PFFS plans are the least efficient of Medicare Advantage plans, with nearly half of these excess payments going to administrative costs, marketing, and profits rather than to additional health benefits provide to enrollees.
There's more and it gets a little bit technical, but basically H.R. 6331 isn't looking to abolish Medicare Advantage overpayments in their entirety, as it should. It's looking to slow the growth of the ridiculously costly and inefficient PFFS plans and level the playing field buy forcing them to play by the same rules as other Medicare Advantage plans. But making Medicare costly and inefficient is part of the plan to destroy the program. It's worth picking up the phone two more times today to call your Sentors and tell them to let H.R. 6331 through.
UPDATE: In a classic example of Okrent's Law, the NYT's Robert Pear turns in a needlessly complicated and information-free story about this issue.
UPDATE: Ted Kennedy shames the Republicans and breaks their filibuster.
Comments