Hoyer reassures seniors on health care reform

 

The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act will not adversely impact Medicare coverage, Hoyer (D-Md., 5th) told a roomful of seniors who said they were worried that they would not be able to continue seeing their primary care doctors under the new legislation.

"I'm concerned that I'm going to lose the benefits that I just started to get," said Bonnie Sinsel of La Plata before the meeting. "Who gives Congress the authority to mandate health care? There's nothing in the Constitution about it."

"I want to know how this is really going to affect us and how it's going to hurt us," La Plata resident Jean Osborne said.

"If they reduce the reimbursement to doctors by 21 percent this year and 4 percent next year I'm not going to have a Medicare doctor," said Wayne Smith of Waldorf.

Hoyer said the new legislation will ensure that seniors are well taken care of under Medicare, including a provision for free annual wellness checkups and free preventive care services.

In addition, the bill will save seniors considerable money in the Medicare Part B plan and will lower the program's Part D drug costs.

"This bill will lower health care costs for you and your family," he said. "Health insurance premiums for Maryland families will continue to skyrocket without health care reform.

"This bill focuses not only on sickness but also on wellness," he said. "We want to keep people well."

Hoyer said the legislation fills the "doughnut" hole in the Medicare Part D program passed in 2003 that offers seniors prescription drug coverage.

Currently, seniors must pay 100 percent of prescription drug costs once they surpass the program's coverage limit that ranges from $2,700 to $6,200, also known as the Medicare "doughnut hole," Hoyer said.

The health care reform bill gives a $250 rebate for prescription drug coverage to all seniors enrolled in the program once that limit is reached and provides a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs beginning in 2011, Hoyer said.

The gap in coverage will completely close by 2020, he said.

"It's going to save a lot of seniors the agony of being forced to pay costs that they can't afford," he said. "This bill extends the life of the Medicare program for another 12 years."

Hoyer said legislators are working on a bill that will address the proposed reduction of Medicare reimbursement payments to doctors.

"We have to fix it and the good news is we're on it," he said, adding that TRICARE military health insurance and other retired military health insurance programs will not be impacted by health care reform.

"There's going to be no change, period," he said. "TRICARE will not be affected nor will any other veteran program."

La Plata resident Mary Weimer said she is concerned about abuse and fraud that occurs in the Medicare program.

"We need to fix that. We need to stop fraud and abuse in the Medicare system. We've got to fix what's broken first," she said.

The bill requires the U.S. Department of Housing and Human Services to establish a screening process for all providers and suppliers before they are granted Medicare billing privileges, Hoyer said. It also provides states the authority to impose screening procedures on Medicare providers and eliminates overpayments to Medicare Advantage plans that increase the profits of private insurance providers.

Finally, the legislation increases the funding for the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Fund to fight Medicare and Medicaid fraud and establishes new penalties for submitting false data on applications, filing fraudulent claims for payments and obstructing audit investigations related to Medicare and Medicaid, Hoyer said.

"This bill will eliminate fraud, waste and abuse," Hoyer said. "It will save billions of dollars that can be used for health care."

Most seniors said that Hoyer's presentation of the health care reform initiative eased many of their concerns.

Weimer said she remembers the uproar that arose when the Medicare program was established in 1965.

"When Medicare first came into being there was some furor about its impact and look how well that turned out," she said. "People need to stop and listen and calm down. … I'm here because I want to know what's really happening."

U.S. Rep. Steny H. Hoyer met with concerned senior citizens in La Plata on Friday to explain how the health care reform bill will impact their Medicare insurance coverage.

The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act will not adversely impact Medicare coverage, Hoyer (D-Md., 5th) told a roomful of seniors who said they were worried that they would not be able to continue seeing their primary care doctors under the new legislation.

"I'm concerned that I'm going to lose the benefits that I just started to get," said Bonnie Sinsel of La Plata before the meeting. "Who gives Congress the authority to mandate health care? There's nothing in the Constitution about it."

"I want to know how this is really going to affect us and how it's going to hurt us," La Plata resident Jean Osborne said.

"If they reduce the reimbursement to doctors by 21 percent this year and 4 percent next year I'm not going to have a Medicare doctor," said Wayne Smith of Waldorf.

Hoyer said the new legislation will ensure that seniors are well taken care of under Medicare, including a provision for free annual wellness checkups and free preventive care services.

In addition, the bill will save seniors considerable money in the Medicare Part B plan and will lower the program's Part D drug costs.

"This bill will lower health care costs for you and your family," he said. "Health insurance premiums for Maryland families will continue to skyrocket without health care reform.

"This bill focuses not only on sickness but also on wellness," he said. "We want to keep people well."

Hoyer said the legislation fills the "doughnut" hole in the Medicare Part D program passed in 2003 that offers seniors prescription drug coverage.

Currently, seniors must pay 100 percent of prescription drug costs once they surpass the program's coverage limit that ranges from $2,700 to $6,200, also known as the Medicare "doughnut hole," Hoyer said.

The health care reform bill gives a $250 rebate for prescription drug coverage to all seniors enrolled in the program once that limit is reached and provides a 50 percent discount on brand-name drugs beginning in 2011, Hoyer said.

The gap in coverage will completely close by 2020, he said.

"It's going to save a lot of seniors the agony of being forced to pay costs that they can't afford," he said. "This bill extends the life of the Medicare program for another 12 years."

Hoyer said legislators are working on a bill that will address the proposed reduction of Medicare reimbursement payments to doctors.

"We have to fix it and the good news is we're on it," he said, adding that TRICARE military health insurance and other retired military health insurance programs will not be impacted by health care reform.

"There's going to be no change, period," he said. "TRICARE will not be affected nor will any other veteran program."

La Plata resident Mary Weimer said she is concerned about abuse and fraud that occurs in the Medicare program.

"We need to fix that. We need to stop fraud and abuse in the Medicare system. We've got to fix what's broken first," she said.

The bill requires the U.S. Department of Housing and Human Services to establish a screening process for all providers and suppliers before they are granted Medicare billing privileges, Hoyer said. It also provides states the authority to impose screening procedures on Medicare providers and eliminates overpayments to Medicare Advantage plans that increase the profits of private insurance providers.

Finally, the legislation increases the funding for the Health Care Fraud and Abuse Control Fund to fight Medicare and Medicaid fraud and establishes new penalties for submitting false data on applications, filing fraudulent claims for payments and obstructing audit investigations related to Medicare and Medicaid, Hoyer said.

"This bill will eliminate fraud, waste and abuse," Hoyer said. "It will save billions of dollars that can be used for health care."

Most seniors said that Hoyer's presentation of the health care reform initiative eased many of their concerns.

Weimer said she remembers the uproar that arose when the Medicare program was established in 1965.

"When Medicare first came into being there was some furor about its impact and look how well that turned out," she said. "People need to stop and listen and calm down. … I'm here because I want to know what's really happening."