Republicans Raised the Cost of Medicare, and Now Whine about its Cost and Insolvency...A Look Back.

Combing through some old files I found this nugget from Dec. 24, 2003 in the debate over the proposed Medicare prescription drug plan. It showed two things; Democrats were appalled at the idea, and the ease in which the Republicans caved to the industry threats to drop senior coverage by giving them a gigantic bribe.

A generous $86 billion worth of payments and tax benefits for employers, giving them a new subsidy for the health benefits many of them already provide to retirees.

Sen. Edward Kennedy, said last week that provisions calling for increased payments to HMOs and other health plans were "obscene."

Health economist Marilyn Moon said: "It is very ironic. ... To increase participation in private plans, we are going to overpay them for the foreseeable future."

#1: As a way to NOT rein in the cost of health care, Republicans not only didn’t tell health providers to go to hell and control costs, but they DOUBLED the bribe:

A special $12 billion fund to try to persuade health plans to enter -- or stay in … Once federal benefits became available, corporate executives told lawmakers and Bush administration officials, companies might accelerate a recent trend in which some have been dropping -- or charging more for -- health coverage for retired workers.

As a result, the bill included incentives to deter companies from abandoning their retirees. They requested what Scully called "a modest buyout," equivalent to perhaps $350 per retiree. The bill, he said, provides more than twice that amount, a sum "way beyond their wildest requests."

#2: As a way to NOT rein in the cost of health care:

Medicare … the nation's largest purchaser of drugs, is expressly forbidden from negotiating price discounts with drug manufacturers, as the Veterans Administration, U.S. military and Medicaid programs do.

What a transparent way to make government look inefficient and costly. Isn’t it time now in the 2010 midterm elections to cut and restructure Medicare’s out of control costs?

NOTE: Due to reform, and the pressure from Obamacare to cover more Americans, the entire health care industry is revamping the way it does business. It’s actually looking at ways to improve treatments, outcomes and lower costs, something that wasn’t even on their radar before. BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE:

Jan. '04: The Wall Street Journal now reports that the White House quietly added "a little-noticed provision" to the bill that allows companies to severely reduce - or almost completely terminate - their retirees' drug coverage "without losing out on the new
subsidy." In other words, the president did not just break his promise to sign a bill that prevents seniors from losing their existing drug coverage, he actually acted to reward companies who cut off their retirees with a lavish new tax break.

The provision was no mere oversight by the president. The major backers
of the provision were Lucent Technologies, General Motors, Dow Chemical and
SBC Communications - all major campaign contributors to the president. According to the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics, executives from those companies have donated almost $140,000 in hard money and $2.5 million in soft money to Bush and his party since 2000.

PS: Back then I did not save links to stories. Sorry about the lack of attribution.