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June 29, 2003
Doing The Right Thing The Wrong Way
Medpundit has it right. The House and Senate "almost had the guts to act responsibly".
A senior drug benefit plan was passed last week and some Senator's attempted to limit the drug benefits for wealthy medicare recipients. Ted Kennedy threatened a filibuster and the amendment failed.
Why is this important? Medicare and Social Security costs are expected to skyrocket in the coming decades as our population gets older. The plan that passed will make this problem worse. Eventually, benefits will have to be cut and taxes will have to be raised to cover these costs. This will especially hurt those who need the aid the most.
What many people don't realize is that seniors, as a group, are the wealthiest group in the country. This is because they've had a lifetime to build their wealth. Ultimately, the bulk of the cost of the wealthy senior's medications will be paid by younger, less-affluent taxpayers. They should have only extended the drug benefits to those seniors who have difficulty paying for the costs of their medications.
Update: American RealPolitik has a great Ramirez cartoon and a great Varvel cartoon on this subject.
Posted by Dave at June 29, 2003 08:48 AM
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