How does Medicare Feel about Program Changes?

There are a million ideas about what overhauling the healthcare system will bring about for everyone and for every program involved in the healthcare system itself. One of those programs is Medicare, and they have some feelings and ideas about what possible changes might mean.

The secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius, who oversees the federal Medicare program, issued a report on Thursday, to help keep seniors and Medicare recipients from worrying about anything that might be coming in the future.

The title of the report is “Protecting Coverage and Strengthening Medicare.” The report addresses various issues and also states that proposals that are being worked on by lawmakers in Washington will help seniors. These proposals, Sebelius says, will keep Medicare from bankruptcy and will help senior with issues including trying to lower the out-of-pocket costs and copays for prescription drugs and make them more affordable for seniors.

“Health insurance reform will protect the coverage seniors depend on, improve the quality of care and help make Medicare strong,” Ms. Sebelius said. It will not be an easy task to convince seniors to count on or support healthcare reform, especially since there are still some big questions they face and there are still issues at loom large as lawmakers try to address and fix them. In addition, there are several sides to this situation and Medicare is only one part of a major problem in the overall healthcare system.

Too many seniors are hearing information that is the exact opposite from what Ms. Sebelius has said in her report. New York Times reporter Robert Pear pointed out in an article last week, that older Americans have some reason to be concerned. On the other hand Secretary Sebelius argues that if the government does nothing, seniors who rely on Medicare will be worse off.

“The status quo is unsustainable and unacceptable for seniors,” she said. She has said this and so have many lawmakers in Washington, yet, round two of the battle is just beginning and there are many lawmakers who are looking toward Medicare to save money. At this point we can wait and see if what Secretary Sebelius has said is right.

Filed under: General-Medicare

Tags: General-Medicare, Healthcare system, Medicare changes, medicare coverage, Medicare overhaul