Expand Medicare!
That’s the latest non public, public option. Even Politico.com recognizes that this new plan is really the “public option” with a new name:
To win over liberals disappointed at losing the public option, Democrats would allow older Americans starting at age 55 to buy into Medicare, the popular program for the aged. The Medicare expansion would be a significant victory for Democrats, who spent years pushing for it. The proposal would in effect create a public health insurance option for older Americans, since Medicare is government-funded and government-run.
On its Health Policy Blog, Mayo clinic posted in part:
Expanding this system to persons 55 to 64 years old would ultimately hurt patients by accelerating the financial ruin of hospitals and doctors across the country. A majority of Medicare providers currently suffer great financial loss under the program. Mayo Clinic alone lost $840 million last year under Medicare. As a result of these types of losses, a growing number of providers have begun to limit the number of Medicare patients in their practices.
Did you get that? Did you pick up what what Mayo said? Let’s pull out the key piece:
As a result of these types of losses, a growing number of providers have begun to limit the number of Medicare patients in their practices.
Time and again, the Democrats, including President Obama, have assured us that the implementation of Placebocare would not cause any form of rationing. In fact they argue that more people will have access to health care with Placebocare than today. How can you significantly increase participation in a bankrupt program and not get rationing? You can’t!
Within the past month SK&A, a national health care information solution company released a study that looked a physician acceptance rates of Medicare and Medicaid. The study found that less than 83% of all physicians still accept Medicare or Medicare patients. Also found in the study is that large, hospital settings are more likely to accept Medicare than small group clinics, the North region of the US was most likely to have physicians that accepted Medicare (87%) while the West was the least likely (78%). Finally, the study found that high volume physicians (those who saw 31 or more patients per day), were more likely to accept medicare than those who saw 20 or fewer patients per day.
As recently as 2002, a study by the Medicare Advisory Council found that 90% of physicians accepted Medicare. In less than 7 years 7% of physicians have exited the Medicare program. I don’t know how the Democrats define rationing but I’d say that a shrinking supply of physicians or being limited to less than 15 minutes per visit because the economics dictate it, is a pretty good example of rationing.
