It’s sad to see that many seniors like Juanita Rowe still don’t understand much about our new health care law. Despite her fear that “the elderly are going to suffer most from this reform,” most Medicare patients will actually benefit from the law.
For the 80 percent of Medicare patients participating in traditional Medicare (Parts A, B, and D), benefits will only improve. Annual wellness visits and recommended preventive services will be available without deductibles, coinsurance, or co-pays – that is, at no cost to the patient beyond the usual premiums. For those who pay for prescription drug coverage (Part D) and have large medication expenses, the “doughnut hole” will gradually be closed over the next ten years, resulting in significantly lower medication costs. Doctor visits will not cost Medicare patients any more than they would have without health care reform. Primary care physicians who currently accept Medicare are unlikely to stop doing so since they will receive increased payments for the primary care services they provide.
The only Medicare patients who may see reduced benefits are the 20 percent who pay additional premiums to obtain Medicare coverage through private insurance companies (Part C, or Medicare Advantage plans). Because of increased administrative costs and insurance company profits, Medicare spends 10 to 15 percent more per patient in Medicare Advantage plans than for those in traditional Medicare. Payments to improve the bottom line of these private companies will appropriately be reduced to save money.
Although it is far from perfect, most Medicare patients should be very happy with the new law. Take time to learn what’s actually in the law before blindly criticizing it. Ms. Rowe would almost certainly be very surprised if she would do so. For an excellent source of unbiased and practical information about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, I recommend the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation website (www.kff.org).
Robin Feierabend
Bristol, Tenn.
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