In his budget due to be released tomorrow, President Biden will propose major changes in the way Medicare’s Part A hospital insurance program is funded. To ensure the program’s solvency, he’d shift hundreds of billions of dollars in tax revenues and allocate $200 billion in cost savings from other parts of Medicare to the hospital insurance (HI) trust fund. Biden’s [...]
As with so many issues, there is a major gulf between President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden when it comes to issues that directly affect older adults. Biden has proposed a long list of specific proposals. Trump has said remarkably little about what he’d do in a second term, and that silence extends to programs that affect seniors. [...]
US District Judge Reed O’Connor’s Friday night decision to strike down the entire Affordable Care Act would damage the well-being of older adults, those 50-64 nearing Medicare, and frail elders and younger people with disabilities who are receiving long-term care benefits under Medicaid. Many lawyers believe the ruling is poorly reasoned and likely would be reversed on appeal. However, it [...]
The Democrats won control of the House, largely on the back of health policy. And many members of the caucus have gone on record in favor of what’s come to be known as “Medicare for all.” The idea is hugely popular, backed by 58 percent of Americans in some polls and up to 70 percent in others. But what does [...]
In a series of recent decisions, the Trump Administration is taking steps that will sharply raise insurance premiums for people aged 50-64, just before they become eligible for Medicare. While these steps are likely to make coverage less expensive for young, healthy consumers, they will inevitably raise costs for middle-aged people with chronic conditions. For many, insurance will become unaffordable. [...]
Representative Frank Pallone (D-NJ), the senior Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is proposing a new universal Medicare long-term care benefit. His bill, still in draft form, initially would provide a daily cash benefit of about $100 after a two-year waiting period. As an alternative to the waiting period, Pallone is also considering a cash deductible that would [...]
It was hard to miss the headlines coming from yesterday’s Medicare Trustees report: Medicare to go broke three years earlier than expected, trustees say Government Says Medicare won't be able to cover costs by 2026 Report puts Medicare insolvency sooner than forecast Let’s get right to the point: Medicare is not going “broke” and recipients are in no danger of [...]
The huge two-year budget agreement reached by Congress early this morning will, for the first time, allow Medicare to pay for some long-term supports and services. Medicare managed care plans, called Medicare Advantage (MA), can now include non-medical services, such as home-delivered meals or rides to a doctor, in their benefit packages. The bill includes other changes to Medicare, including [...]
Congress is nearing passage of a $1.5 trillion tax cut that would mostly benefit businesses and high-income households. For older adults, the effects are complicated. Some will receive large tax cuts. Some will be no better off and a few will be worse off. But beyond the immediate tax changes in the bill, the measure sets the stage for what [...]
President Trump’s multi-pronged administrative attack on the Affordable Care Act would sharply increase premiums for middle-aged people who purchase insurance in the individual market, likely driving many to drop coverage. Most would not feel the effects until 2019, though some will face sharply higher premiums in 2018—rate hikes they’ll see when the open enrollment season begins next month. The President [...]