Blunt Says Republicans Will Win on Medicare Regardless of Democratic Response to ‘Trigger’ Legislation
House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) on Thursday said Republicans will win on Medicare regardless of the Democratic response to a legislative proposal released earlier this month by the Bush administration as required by the "trigger" provision in the 2003 Medicare law, CongressDaily reports (Johnson, CongressDaily, 2/29).
The proposal would increase Medicare prescription drug benefit premiums for higher-income beneficiaries, cap noneconomic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits and require health care providers to implement electronic health records, among other provisions (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 2/19). On Monday, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) introduced the proposal as legislation in their respective chambers (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 2/26).
Blunt said, "The Democrats have a couple of choices. They can just act like it doesn't matter how much we spend on Medicare. They can shut the trigger off." He added, "Or they could try to ignore it."
Democrats oppose the proposed increase in Medicare prescription drug benefit premiums and the cap on noneconomic damages in malpractice lawsuits. The requirement that providers implement EHRs has bipartisan support in principle. According to CongressDaily, Republicans could force a vote on the legislation in September in the event that the "House does not vote on a Medicare spending bill by July 30." Blunt said, "We're OK with any of those, politically" (Johnson, CongressDaily, 2/29).
