Obama’s Budget Eyes Provider Cuts To Save Money
The president's proposal would save $402 billion from Medicare and Medicaid over 10 years, mostly from lower reimbursements to health care providers and drugmakers.
Reuters: Obama Budget Sets Medicare Savings, Hospitals Seek Reprieve
President Barack Obama's budget plan for 2015 would save $402 billion from the Medicare and Medicaid government health care programs for the elderly and poor over the next 10 years, primarily due to reduced reimbursement to health care providers and drugmakers. A White House budget proposal for the fiscal year beginning October 1, released on Tuesday, would save more than $350 billion by pursuing a familiar menu of options that range from increased drug rebates to more efficient post-acute care, reduced hospital admissions and new means testing for Medicare (Morgan, 3/4).
Modern Healthcare: Health Care Providers Oppose Medicare Cuts In Obama's 2025 Budget
President Barack Obama is proposing more than $400 billion in cuts to Medicare over the next decade in his fiscal 2015 budget, an almost identical amount to what he recommended last year. But those cuts are heavily weighted toward future years, with only $3.5 billion occurring in 2015 (Demko and Zigmond, 3/4).
CQ HealthBeat: White House Shies Away From Major Change In Medicare, Medicaid
President Barack Obama’s fiscal 2015 budget would fully fund ongoing implementation of his health care overhaul, while again calling on Medicare beneficiaries and providers to pay more to extend the program’s solvency. Obama’s budget proposal draws on familiar ideas for revamping Medicare and Medicaid and avoids major structural changes to the programs. The proposal’s changes to federal health programs would save approximately $402 billion over 10 years, including $354.1 billion in cuts to Medicare providers and $8.9 billion in savings from Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (Ethridge, 3/4).
The Hill: Obama Budget Hits Post-Acute Care, Drugmakers
President Obama's latest budget proposal would hit post-acute-care providers, drug companies and wealthier seniors on Medicare as part of $402 billion in estimated health care savings over the next decade. Familiar from previous White House budgets, the proposals appeared in a document notable for its continuity on health care spending for 2015 (Easley, 3/4).
