Kerry Press Release: Bush Medicare Bill would eat up 37% of Soc Sec Checks

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Tue Sep-14-04 02:27 PM
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Kerry Press Release: Bush Medicare Bill would eat up 37% of Soc Sec Checks

For Immediate Release
September 14, 2004

REVEALED: BUSH MEDICARE BILL COULD EAT UP 37% OF SOCIAL SECURITY CHECKS
Bush Administration Had Withheld this Information

New data from the Department of Health and Human Services reveals today that the Bush administration has again withheld key information about the new Medicare bill. The new information shows that seniors will spend 37 percent of their Social Security check on Medicare expenses when the new drug benefit starts in 2006 and that this percentage will increase to nearly 50 percent by 2021.

Since 2001, the Bush Administration has put out a Medicare Trustees report that includes how much of an individual�s social security check will go to Medicare, but the 2004 report withheld the information this year. This is at least the second time that the Bush administration has withheld key information from Congress about the true cost of the Medicare drug bill -- The GAO has concluded that Bush officials lied to Congress about the effect of the new bill on Social Security.

NEW DATA REVEALS THAT MEDICARE BILL COULD CONSUME 37% OF SOCIAL SECURITY CHECKS

Bush Withheld Information on the Effect of Medicare on Social Security. Every year the Bush Administration has included a chart in its annual Medicare Trustees report on how much of the Social Security benefits Medicare will consume. However, the information was not included in the 2004 report. As Rep. Stark said: �it doesn�t look good to lie to grandma so the Bush administration has withheld information and come up with creative ways to mask the damage they have done to Medicare.� (USA Today, 9/14/04)

Medicare Premiums Consuming Increasing Amount of Social Security. �Information the Bush administration excluded from its 2004 report on the Medicare program shows that a typical 65-year-old can expect to spend 37% of his or her Social Security income on Medicare premiums, co-payments and out-of-pocket expenses in 2006. That share is projected to grow to almost 40% in 2011 and nearly 50% by 2021.� (USA Today, 9/14/04)

The Bush Medicare Law Will �Consume Virtually the Entire Amount of Social Security Benefits.� �Unless Congress does something to hold down costs confronting seniors, the official projections suggest that health spending will consume virtually the entire amount of Social Security benefits when children born today reach retirement age.� (USA Today, 9/14/04)

Year     Total Out-of Pocket Expenses	   
2006     37.2%	   
2011     39.4%	   
2016     45.2%	   
2040     62.2%	   
2078     97%

Note: Data for an average 65-year-old based on information from the Office of the Actuary at CMS.

NEW REPORT FOLLOWS RECENT REVELATIONS OF OTHER MEDICARE LIES:

Bush Administration Broke the Law in Covering Up the True Cost of the Medicare Bill. The General Accounting Office found that the Bush administration and Thomas Scully broke the law in covering up the true cost of the Medicare bill. �The Bush administration illegally withheld data from Congress on the cost of the new Medicare law, and as a penalty, the former head of the Medicare agency, Thomas A. Scully, must repay seven months of his salary to the government, federal investigators said today.� (New York Times, 9/7/04)

BIGGEST INCREASE IN MEDICARE PREMIUMS IN HISTORY:

Premiums Have Increased By a Record 56 Percent Under Bush, a Record 17 Percent This Year. During Bush�s term, premiums paid for Medicare Part B, which pays for doctors visits and outpatient hospital services, have increased by 56 percent. This year�s 17 percent increase represents "the largest increase in the program's 40-year history.� How much will Medicare beneficiaries pay annually for Bush�s special interest payments? According to CMS calculations, 15% of the premium increase will go directly from their pocketbooks to HMOs every year. (New York Times, 9/4/04; AdvancePCS, 8/25/03; Medicare Rights Center, 11/14/03)

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