Editorials Address New Means Testing Policy for Medicare Part B Premium
Several newspapers recently published editorials on a new policy that will require higher-income Medicare beneficiaries in 2007 for the first time to pay a higher monthly premium for Part B than other beneficiaries. Summaries appear below.
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Des Moines Register: Opponents raise concerns that the new policy "will lead to steadily lowering the income thresholds and will erode public support for the program," but "no one yelled and screamed when Congress decided lower-income seniors would pay lower premiums for drug coverage," a Register editorial states. The editorial adds, "When Medicare is taking up an ever-larger portion of the federal budget, it's hard to justify that taxpayers should pick up the costs the wealthy can afford to pay" (Des Moines Register, 9/12).
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Las Vegas Sun: "Income-based premiums are not the basis for a social insurance program, as Medicare is designed to be," a Sun editorial states. "While we must find a way to make Medicare financially sustainable, pricing the upper class out of the system and creating problems for the future middle class shouldn't be part of the solution," the editorial concludes (Las Vegas Sun, 9/12).
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Long Island Newsday: "Congress has shown no inclination to adjust the income threshold for the surcharge to reflect regional differences in the cost of living," a Newsday editorial states, adding, "It should." The editorial states that the new policy "will erode political support for Medicare if it pushes too many affluent enrollees out of Plan B and into private plans" (Long Island Newsday, 9/13).
- South Florida Sun-Sentinel: The new policy is "sure to elicit complaints that the change is simply a soak-the-rich effort," a Sun-Sentinel editorial states. "The criticism is unconvincing," the editorial states, adding, "The other alternative, cutting benefits across the board, could undermine the health care availability for a broad number of people" (South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 9/12).
