There?s been plenty of hand-wringing, Monday morning quarterbacking and fortune telling about what the Democrats? loss of 60 votes in the Senate really means for health care reform.
Any way you cut it…it can?t be good. The current system doesn?t work and we simply can?t allow political tide shifts to stop vital health care reforms.American seniors, especially, have a lot at stake in this health care reform debate. The Medicare provisions included in health care reform bills being debated now are among the most beneficial reforms for seniors since Medicare?s creation. Closing the Part D doughnut hole, allowing government negotiation of drug prices in Part D, and eliminating billions of dollars of wasteful subsidies to private insurers in Medicare are dollars-and-cents and common sense reforms.We?ll continue to work hard to mobilize support for Medicare proposals that would improve efficiency and care for millions of Medicare beneficiaries while also providing savings for system-wide health care reform efforts. We?ll also work to defeat provisions which don?t benefit seniors in Medicare such as the Medicare Commission provision being debated. Contrary to the rhetoric heard from opponents, these bills don?t cut Medicare; rather they includes provisions to ensure that seniors receive high-quality care and the best value for our Medicare dollars. Without system wide health care reform, the skyrocketing costs of health care will continue to climb unchecked making Medicare unsustainable.That?s why inaction is the true threat facing Medicare.