Medicare
...tion. Another point worth noting in 1969 was the Bureau of Health Insurance. This program was designed to counteract abuses of the health insurance program. Some of the most notable programs were created under the Clinton administration. In 1997 Clinton signed the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. This new law reduced the rate of increase payments to providers, created several new prospective payment systems, added coverage of certain preventive benefits, and added the Medicare+Choice program. Later in his term he signed the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999. This made numerous changes in the Medicare program to reduce the payment reductions to providers. Next, on president Clinton’s agenda was to sign the Benefits Improvement and Protection Act of 2000. This improved the Medicaid coverage of certain women’s health services. The Problem The problem, in its simplest form, is that there is just not enough money to cover everyone that Medicare promises to benefit. This problem can be broken down further by analyzing the abuse of the system. Too many people are going to the doctor for every little thing that goes wrong. For instance, if you sneeze that is not grounds for going to the doctor. These people are driving up the demand for medicine and in turn driving up the prices. This is just one example of what happens when the government overrides the rule of economics, that being that price is a function of supply and demand Why not try free market capitalism? MSNBC (2004) reports that the Bush administration has released that Medicare premiums will increase by 17 percent in 2005. This is an $11.60 a month increase, and is the largest increase in the 40-year-old programs history. Monthly payments for part B of the program will increase from $66.60 to $78.20. Part B of the health care program includes all senior citizens and disabled people. “The administration, seeking political advantage among older voters, had tried to depict the Medicare law, with its first-ever prescription drug benefit, as a boon to seniors” (p.1). The Government now pays for 75 percent of the cost for Part B and the beneficiaries pay the rest. These numbers sound great to most people, but not to the senior citizens paying the bills. Most people don’t realize how much 25 percent of the medical bill of someone with cancer is. To put this number into perspective, we are talking about 25 percent of about 1,500 dollars for a month worth of pills. Gregory (2004) reports that the elderly are paying almost twice as much than they did before the program was established. MSNBC (2004) reports that the new policies paved the way for increased criticism following the Republican convention. “This administration has had four years to improve Medicare and instead have made it worse. Today’s news reflects the reality. Not rhetoric, of this administration’s bad record on Medicare,” said Rep. Fortney “Pete” Stark, D-Calif. Premiums are increasing almost exponentially over the past two years with and increase of 8.7 percent in 2003 and an increase of 13 percent in 2004. The Part B deductible will increase $10 in 2005 to $110, which is another change mandated by the new Medicare law. About 93 percent of Medicare’s 41.8 million beneficiaries are enrolled in Part B, so the increased deductibles will help pay for better physician services, better medical equipment, and some home health care. The government also has released that the Part A recipients of Medicare will see a $32 increase on their deductible, which will push their deductibles to almost a $1000. This will be the only payment that Part A recipients will have to pay for up to a 60 days of inpatient hospital care. Consequences The consequence for our health care system is simple; we have a drastic, domestic problem on our hands that is endanger of growing out of our control. Rettenmaier (2004) reports that over the next 75 years scheduled benefits exceed dedicated revenues by 33 trillion dollars, measured in current dollars. “To put that number into perspective, obligations to the elderly are more than six times the size of the economy and 18 times the size of the outstanding federal debt” (p.1). Those numbers are staggering when you think about the number jobs, roads, social programs, and other basic functions of the government. Most economists have been studying possible solutions for social security when in fact it is Medicare that is in debt five times greater than social security. Every time policy makers try to fix the problem they just make it worse. Some people say that an immediate solution is not necessary because the trust funds can pay benefits well into the future. These are more like IOU’s and are digging the government into a deeper hole. This year will mark the first time in many years that the government will have to draw on general revenues to cover the excess spending of elderly entitlement programs. The funding deficit this year is equal to 3.6 percent of federal income taxes, and will double every five years. By 2019 one of every four income dollars will go straight to the elderly programs. Ways to Improve Health Care O’Rourke (2004) reports that one way to improve health care is free market capitalism. This will have balance the supply and demand curve and will drive the prices down. “If you think health care is expensive now, just wait until it’s free” (p.1). If people are forced to pay for their medical services then they will not go for every little problem. People will actually research the product based on a price search. Not every can buy the most expensive treatment just like not everyone can drive a Rolls Royce. The problem with this solution is that you cannot think of someone’s health care the same way as a human life. Life is precious and deserves the best treatment regardless of social status. Another belief is that socialized medicine would improve the treatments for the monetary underprivileged. Everyone is equal when it comes to medical treatment. In this system the government is responsible for who gets what drugs and when they get it. “The ‘free national health care’, which Kerry has said Americans deserve, is not free. It is paid, upfront, by value-added taxing. It creates a system whereby the American citizen is dependant upon the government for their life. Some bureaucrat makes t...