Medicare Part D Under Attack From Democrats : Progressives Want Control of Seniors

Little wonder the progressive socialists democrats are attacking Medicare Part D - it works and therefore it must be destroyed. Oh and it was proposed and implemented by Republican George Bush, another reason to make sure through overregulation and suffocating government interference the entire program will be forced to fail like all of the other ideas coming from the progressive democrats.

ObamaCare, that's stealing hundreds of billions from Medicaid, Medicare to shore-up the democrats plan to crush health care is just the beginning of the problems for seniors. And don't forget the ObamaCare 'death panels', as Sarah Palin so stoutly identified them, that will take edge off the senior population when it is fully implemented..

The main stream media has demonized Part D every since it was signed into law as just another Republican attempt to derail health care for seniors. But the fact it is a real success, and again why the democrats want to control it and thereby make sure it fails. What a great campaign talking point for the democrats.

And who voted in two elections to make this happen? da - seniors!

The real sad part here is that seniors, for the most part, are to lazy, poorly informed or just plain to stupid to understand who is willingly trying to drive them into early graves.  The Democrats!

'Oh no, oh no, we all have to vote democrat, they are the ones giving us all of the free stuff. The democrats have always taken care of us, it's the third rail of politics you know - they wouldn't do anything bad to us. What's not to love about democrats? Besides, we have always voted democrat, always. How can we change now?'

Go figure!

Proposed Medicare Drug Plan Rule Would Harm Seniors and Taxpayers Alike
Source: Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Angela Boothe, "CMS Rulemaking and Medicare Part D: Stifling Innovation, Limiting Access, and Decreasing Quality," American Action Forum, February 6, 2013.
February 14, 2014

A proposed change in the way Medicare drug plans are administered would stifle innovation, reduce access and boost premiums for both seniors and taxpayers, say Douglas Holtz-Eakin and Angela Boothe of the American Action Forum.

Medicare Part D was created by the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) to provide affordable prescription drug insurance coverage with a variety of benefit levels and premium costs. Over the past 10 years, Part D has developed a track record of competition among plans for seniors' business, controlled premium and budget costs, and excellent access and quality. Medicare Part D has matured into a financially successful and popular program.

However, regulations proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in January 2014 will drive up cost by interfering with plans' abilities to negotiate prices. The impact will be immense:

• An estimated 14 million seniors could lose their current plan.
• Beneficiaries could see premium increases of up to 21 percent.
• The changes could cost the Part D program up to $10 billion over the next 10 years.

For the first time, CMS has interpreted statutory non-interference in the Part D program. Through this proposed regulation, CMS's interpretation allows for federal interference in negotiations between Part D plans and provider pharmacies. Interfering in plan negotiations places the issuers at decreased risk, reducing their incentive to control plan costs and limits plan innovation in cost sharing and benefit packages. The action will also limit the number of bids per Part D Plan Issuer. It also creates uncertainty for 2015.