Medicare Monitor
The Palm Beach Post's veteran Washington correspondent, Larry Lipman, tracks policy makers and interest groups who are shaping the future of the federal health insurance program for the elderly.Medicare Web Resources
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Medicare at a glance
Medicare is the federal health care system that covers about 36 million people age 65 and older, plus 7 million disabled. It has four parts:
Financed by a 2.9 percent payroll tax divided equally between employees and employers.
Financed by beneficiary premiums and federal general revenue. Current monthly premiums are $93.50. Starting this year, individuals whose taxable income is more than $80,000 will pay a higher premium.
Financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.
The plans are private and financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.
-- Larry Lipman
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Home > Medicare Monitor
House overrides veto
The House of Representatives just voted 383-41 to override President Bush’s veto of the Medicare bill averting a 10.6 percent pay cut for doctors.
Senate action is expected at 6 p.m.
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Bush vetoes Medicare fix
President Bush has vetoed the Medicare bill that would avert a 10.6 percent pay cut for doctors.
Here is the text of Bush’s message to Congress:
I am returning herewith without my approval H.R. 6331, the “Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008.” I support the primary objective of this legislation, to forestall reductions in physician payments. Yet taking choices away from seniors to pay physicians is wrong. This bill is objectionable, and I am vetoing it because:
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Bush will veto Medicare bill
President Bush intends to veto a Medicare bill that would avert a 10.6 percent pay cut for doctors, a White House spokesman said today.
The statement came a day after the Senate, on its third try, overcame procedural roadblocks set by the Republicans on a 69-30 vote — two more than necessary to override a veto.
Last month, the House passed the bill 355-59, well above the two-thirds margin needed for an override.
White House spokesman Tony Fratto told reporters at the daily noon briefing that Bush would veto the bill because he objected to the way Congress paid for averting the physician pay cut.
The bill would reduce payments to private managed care Medicare Advantage plans by nearly $14 billion over five years. Bush has previously opposed cuts in Medicare Advantage payments although the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has repeatedly said the plans are overpaid.
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Kennedy vote breaks Medicare logjam
With ailing Sen. Edward M. Kennedy casting a dramatic and decisive vote, the Senate cleared a procedural roadblock Wednesday and ultimately passed a Medicare bill that averts a 10.6 percent pay cut for doctors.
Escorted by Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., the Democrats presumptive presidential nominee, and several longtime Senate friends, Kennedy made a dramatic appearance in the Senate chamber during the roll call vote.
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Baucus: Gut sense of wiggle room on veto
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus just told reporters he has a “gut sense there is some wiggle room,” regarding President Bush’s threat to veto the House-passed Medicare bill that would avert a 10.6 percent physician pay cut.
Since the Senate came up one vote short of the 60 needed for cloture before it recessed two weeks ago, Baucus said he’s received indications from some GOP senators that they might change their vote if there is another cloture vote, possibly Wednesday or Thursday. But Baucus wouldn’t say which senators have indicated they might switch.
Baucus said the president may be dissuaded from vetoing the bill depending on the size of the vote. The House passed the bill with a 355-59 veto-proof margin last month.
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Reid: Senate will try again next month
Reid said the Senate will try again when it returns from its July 4th recess.
“Senate Republicans will be given another opportunity to reconsider their unfortunate decision to hurt patients and doctors,” Reid said.
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Senate slammed on Medicare vote
Reaction was sharp and bitter after the Senate fell one vote short late Thursday night of passing a bill that would have averted a 10.6 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors slated to take effect Tuesday.
The final vote on a procedural move to proceed was 58-40 after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., switched his vote to preserve his parliamentary options. Sixty votes were needed.
Democrats blamed Republicans and President Bush, who had threatened to veto the bill. Republicans blamed Democrats. Doctors and advocates for the elderly tended to place most of the blame on the Republicans.
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AMA ‘pleased’ with Medicare bill
“Action now moves to the U.S. Senate. We urge the Senate to act prior to the July 4th recess to pass legislation to stop the cuts and allow Medicare to continue to keep its promise to our nation’s seniors. Medicare cuts will hurt seniors as physicians are forced to make practice changes to keep their medical practice doors open. The future for seniors’ access to health care is dire - unless the Senate acts.”
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AHIP Reacts to House Medicare bill passage.
“Congress today rushed through legislation that would require Medicare Advantage beneficiaries to pay for the increase in physician payments without considering the impact these cuts would have on vulnerable seniors. As seniors learn the details of this hastily passed legislation, they will be shocked to learn they could face fewer choices, reduced benefits, and higher out-of-pocket costs if these cuts become law,” Ignagni said in a statement.
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House passes Medicare bill
With less than a week before a deep cut in Medicare payments to doctors is scheduled to take effect, the House passed a bill Tuesday that would avert those cuts while trimming payments to private managed care plans.
The 355-59 vote came despite Republican leaders complaints that the Democrats had not given lawmakers enough time to review the legislation and had refused to allow the bill to be amended.
But Democrats argued the hasty passage was necessary because doctors have warned they will stop taking new Medicare patients if their payments are reduced.