Any senior who is a Medicare recipient that votes Republican is, to be kind, deluded. Any senior who got their Medicare booklet in the mail should read it before believing any of the lies told by Republicans about HCR and Medicare. Here's my husband's story.
My husband will be 71 in January. When he turned 65 we were seriously broke and signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan in Chicago. As demonized as these plans are, this was a Godsend for us. He could see a doctor any time he needed one without the spectre of financial ruin -- something we have never been able to enjoy because we're self-employed and insurance has been a huge burden for us, requiring less and less care for more and more cost as he neared Medicare age. Yes, the taxpayers pay for the increased services of a Medicare Advantage plan and my husband is more than willing to drop the plan if need be, get a medigap policy, so that millions more Americans will have access to health care. But that ain't happening this year. We were shocked -- shocked I tell you -- at what we found when we received our information on our plan for next year.
First of all, people need to understand that Medicare Advantage programs have to offer at least what Medicare offers, and then offer more at a reduced cost. Yes, the taxpayer pays and I'm sure the insurance companies are making dandy profits. But the patient does benefit with reduced costs and more care. We have had excellent doctors and excellent care. We pay no premium for our Chicago plan. Frankly, with wellness care being required now for all Medicare recipients -- hear that, seniors! Required -- I expected that for the first time we would have to pay a premium.
Each year the services vary: from a nominal co-pay for doctor's visits, a $35 co-pay for specialists that is sometimes a little less, changes in what physical therapy will cost, etc. It's always been reasonable but there's always been a charge. Hospital costs (which thankfully we have not needed) are always considerably less than Medicare.
Here are a few of the changes for 2011:
Out-of-pocket maximum: 2010: n/a 2011: $3,400
Medicare-covered
preventive: may not cover all All Medicare covered
preventive at no cost preventive at no cost
Chiropractic services $35 co-pay $5 co-pay
Outpatient rehab $50 co-pay $15 co-pay
Colorectal screening $35 office co-pay $0 co-pay
at a hospital: $200 co-pay $0 co-pay
Mammogram: $35 co-pay $0 co-pay
You get the idea. So many services that had co-pays now have no co-pay at all because of HCR.
There are some items that had co-pays in 2010 and now say "20% of the cost." But you now have a maximum $3,400 out-of-pocket. That is a HUGE change.
Of all the people who benefit from HCR, the well-kept secret is that Medicare beneficiaries are benefiting sooner than most other Americans.
As I thought about it, why did the cost of my plan not go up as I expected? Well -- because what is Medicare, but a massive public option for people over 65. In order to keep my business, the insurance company had to make it attractive enough for me to stay. Now that Medicare is offering a number of covered services for free, and with a $3,400 cap on out-of-pocket, the insurance companies better fight for my business.
I know HCR is terribly flawed but it's a start in the right direction. If the public option had been included, the insurance companies would be fighting to keep our business and the "free market", with major incentives from the Evil Government, would have worked to bring costs down a lot faster.
But right now, without HCR, seniors would not be receiving this needed relief. Any senior who thinks otherwise is deluded and voting against their own interests.
What makes this work? The competition from government-run Medicare. I know that. But remember, Medicare didn't look anything like it does today when it was instituted in 1965. It took decades to improve. We only get that improvement by our consistent and patient support of Democrats in Congress and the White House. Without that, we take a giant step backward. We not only lose what we've gained from HCR, we lose Medicare as we know it, much less any of the other advantages of HCR like pre-existing condition coverage, etc.
Returning America to progressive ideals is not a sprint, it's a marathon. In one critical way, we have to behave more like Republicans: we have to remember who are enemy is, and it's not each other -- it's Republicans. Always. Republicans never forget that their enemy is us. Never. I only wish the Moral Majority had bailed on Republicans when they didn't repeal Roe v. Wade. like we're bailing because we haven't repealed DADT in less than two years or gotten Medicare for all. Republicans didn't bail -- they kept voting Republican in sufficient enough numbers while Democrats stayed home in sufficient numbers from 1994 on to turn our country into a place we barely recognize.
I'm 60. I have no insurance now. I could decide to stay home and not vote because Joe Lieberman screwed me out of Medicare for 55 and over and blame all Democrats because I didn't get it. But I see it as a marathon and not a sprint. I see that it will take at least a decade to return this country to basic progressive ideals that have made us the beacon of freedom and fairness. I wish I could have it all right now. Of course I do.
But the spectre of what befalls us on November 3 if we don't look at things long term is more terrifying than anything I could have imagined.
Make sure every Medicare recipient you know reads their booklet before voting on Tuesday. Make it clear that these massive improvements in coverage are exactly what Republicans will take away from them. Any senior who needs Medicare is an idiot if they vote Republican.