Health Care: Seniors

You represent Florida. Florida is the land of retirees. The proposed health care bills will have a very adverse effect on seniors.

A large portion of the proposed bills will be paid for by cuts in Medicare. Medicare will be cut by over 500 billion dollars. These cuts will be made as more and more “baby boomers” enroll in Medicare. Seniors are told that their benefits will not be cut and the quality of care will not suffer. The cuts will be offset by increased government efficiency. Is this the same government that is bankrupting Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security? Is this the same government that instigated and ran “Cash for Clunkers”? The reimbursement rates for specialists and treatments are being reduced. An example of these cuts is the reduced allowance for an echo cardiogram ( a basic diagnostic procedure ). Its reimbursement rate will be cut by 40%. By drastically reducing rates the government is, in effect, rationing treatment. People will needlessly die because of these cuts.

The stimulus bill created the Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) panel. The House bill proposes a Benefits Advisory Board. These boards will decide what treatments are acceptable and who may receive them. Health care is to be “cost effective”. How “cost effective” will seniors be deemed to be?

I am dreading the time when I will have to depend on Medicare for my health care. Age should not be a determining factor for receiving health care. Can’t our government do better than this?