Part-D Designed with Unnecessary Administrative Costs

CONservative Spin:

“if the federal government begins picking drugs and setting prices for all Medicare beneficiaries, administrative costs would add a new burden to taxpayers.”

Source

Mike Leavitt, "Medicare And the Market," The Washington Post, January 11, 2007." Retrieved on December 14, 2007, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/10/AR2007011002020.html.

PROgressive Response:

By Isaiah J. Poole

December 13th, 2007

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The government's administrative expense to run the Medicare program accounts for only 3% of Medicare spending. By contrast, the amount of every premium dollar retained by private insurance companies for marketing, administration and profit is 14%. The CBO has projected that the marketing and the profits of the insurance industry would add $38 billion in costs in the first seven years of the program compared to a benefit that was administered through Medicare.

Question to ask: "Why was Part D designed to hit seniors and taxpayers with such high and unnecessary administrative costs?

Source

CMS, Office of the Actuary, National Health Expenditures, Table 11. Calendar year 2005. Retrieved on December 14, 2007, from, http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalHealthExpendData/downloads/tables.pdf.

Source

"Medicare For All: Quality, Affordable, Health Care for All Americans,” by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Retrieved on December 14, 2007, from http://energycommerce.house.gov/medicare/M4A_factsheet.pdf.

Source

Congressional Budget Office, 2004a. “A Detailed Description of CBO's Cost Estimate for the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit,” Washington, D.C.: Congressional Budget Office, Table 3. Retrieved on December 14, 2007, from http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdoc.cfm?index=5668&type=0&sequence=0.