Posted on 12/13/2010 2:49:59 AM PST by Scanian
While much of Washington was fo cused on the tax compromise be tween President Obama and congressional Republicans, the Senate was putting together another deal that shows how little both parties really understand what happened in the last election.
Senate Democrats and Republicans agreed on -- and passed by a vote of 99-0 -- a one-year extension of the so-called "doctor fix" for Medicare. The result is almost certainly going to mean higher deficits and more debt piled on the backs of our children.
The entire conundrum is an artifice of the way Congress does business.
Back in 1997, Congress established something known as the "sustainable growth rate," a formula designed to control increases in Medicare spending. If Medicare's payments to physicians grew significantly faster than the overall inflation rate, reimbursements would be cut according to the SGR formula.
The formula was designed to require few real cuts in the early years. But in 2002, it dictated an automatic 4.8 percent across-the-board cut. Doctors, hospitals and seniors complained at once -- and Congress, caught between unsustainable Medicare spending and some of the country's most powerful interest groups, caved.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Agree with the criticism but Michael Tanner doesn’t have to answer to the voters. Congress does and there’s no way Congress is going to tell seniors to forget about seeing their doctors. The political reality is the payment cuts in doctors’ fees are never going to happen.
I have great hopes for this Congress, but I have this idea lurking in the back of my head, that Republicans are going to sell us out.
It has a;lready started with the great Compromise, Repubican Congress critters seem to like having objects (Democrat Objects) shoved up their butts.
We’ll find out on Jan. 5 when the 112th Congress is seated.
We’ll see how much of the “old bull” of the tax compromise and other recent bills is really attributable to the “old bulls” of the GOP and how much is just the nature of the Republican beast.
2011 MEDICARE COST SHARING
Beginning in 2011, people who pay the income-related Part B premium will also pay an additional income-related Part D premium, known as a monthly adjustment amount. The monthly adjustment amount is not related to the premium of the plan in which such beneficiaries are enrolled, but is based on a percentage of the Base Beneficiary Premium for the year as determined by CMS. Thus, an individual with modified adjusted gross income of $86,000 will have a Part D monthly adjustment amount of $12.00 withheld from his/her check
regardless of whether s/he enrolls in a plan with a premium of $14.85 or a premium of $40.
The monthly adjustment amount will be paid directly to Medicare through withholding from Social Security checks. Beneficiaries who pay the Part D monthly adjustment amount will continue to pay their regular Part D premium to the drug plan in which they enroll.
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So a lot of us are going to pay an additional $12 for another persons Part D, even though we don’t have it. BUT they are not paying the additional $12.
On top of paying MORE for my own A/B (which I don’t kick about.) But I DON’T want to SHARE what little ‘wealth’ my small SS check has in it.
My statement for next year is $214.32 LESS than this year’s! We are not enrolled in Med D, just Med A/B which is basically forced on retired Military. We don’t make HALF the $86K sited. Hubby’s statement is not in yet so I don’t know how much his will be going up, Wed mail should bring and tell that. Gail
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