[quote=briansd1]Concho, I find it interesting that Republicans are defending Medicare benefits against rationing when they fought against Medicare to begin with. I don’t believe they mean it. It’s only a scare tactic.

I understand that doctors like the Medicare system. They may not like the reimbursement rates, but they find it much easier to deal with a single payer system.

To me, the public option would be to open up Medicare to younger premium-paying enrollees (of course they would pay higher premiums than retirees).[/quote]

Also, the part of medicare that is being reduced is the wasted 1/3 that goes to private insurance, for doing nothing.

Think about it. Public money is being transfered to private insurers, who take a big cut, and then distribute it back to the health care system. How does that make any sense?

Here is one example of the waste in the current system. My parents selected Humana as their medicare “administrator”. One of Humana’s selling points is “free YMCA membership”. My parents probably use the Y maybe 10 times a year max, if that. But medicare dollars are being used to pay for it, as a sales gimmick to entice medicare recipients. Now I am tickled pink that my parents get a free Y membership, but how necessary is that, especially when millions have no health care at all, much less a free club membership?

It would seem to me that it would make sense to cut out for profit companies when it comes to tax payer medicare dollars. Its an unnecessary give away to insurers, when in the case of medicare, the tax payer is the insurer.