Temporary Good News for Medicare Recipients      

Get a FREE 120+ Page Book About Medicare. Click Here Now for Details!

The Senate and House have been grappling with the budget for months now.  There have been many different viewpoints included some pointed and heated debates with the President, with promises of vetoes.

Yesterday, the Senate passed a $3.1 Trillion budget which will pass the burden of balancing the budget and dealing with tax issues that will likely affect Medicare and other important benefits.  As the candidates for President assess their plans and responsibilities, as well as their priorities, they will need to be thinking about how to balance the budget while saving essential programs and services such as Medicare.

The annual budget debate in Congress provides for a non-binding resolution that opens the way for later bills that will affect taxes and, of course, Medicare and other programs.  For now, though, the budget offered by Congress will extend some tax breaks for businesses, and will prevent doctors from having to absorb the proposed cuts in their Medicare payments.

Though this is a band aid for now, it is not a way to solve the issues in the long term.  Medicare recipients could be hit with less reimbursement to doctors, less procedures that are covered and stricter guidelines and oversight as to what is actually “medically necessary.”  Of course, services and procedures must be considered “medically necessary” in order to have Medicare pay for them.

The other issue regarding cutting repayment to doctors is also an issue that will need to be addressed when the next President grapples with the budget.  Though there is a delay for now, the issue will be right back on the table and needs to be dealt with as efficiently as possible so that the issue is resolved quickly and fairly and everyone involved in the Medicare system – especially patients and doctors – can move forward with more certainty.

It will be important to watch and see what happens during and after the election and see how things pan out.  Though the picture does not look rosy, there are a number of ways to help the Medicare system and a number of ideas that are being considered.

For now, at least, benefits are staying as is, and will be dealt with, most likely in 2009, after the political hoopla settles down and Washington get back to the real nuts and bolts business of running the government.

Entry Filed under: General-Medicare