GOP Spending hypocrisy? Say it ain't so Melvin.

[Sheepshank]

Democrats see GOP hypocrisy in health care debate


By CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writer Charles Babington, Associated Press Writer – Fri Dec 25, 4:01 pm ET
WASHINGTON – Republican senators attacking the cost of a Democratic health care bill showed far different concerns six years ago, when they approved a major Medicare expansion that has added tens of billions of dollars to federal deficits.

The inconsistency — or hypocrisy, as some call it — has irked Democrats, who claim that their plan will pay for itself with higher taxes and spending cuts and cite the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office for support.

By contrast, when Republicans controlled the House, Senate and White House in 2003, they overcame Democratic opposition to add a deficit-financed prescription drug benefit to Medicare. The program will cost a half-trillion dollars over 10 years, or more by some estimates.

With no new taxes or spending offsets accompanying the Medicare drug program, the cost has been added to the federal debt.

<snip>

"As far as I am concerned, any Republican who voted for the Medicare drug benefit has no right to criticize anything the Democrats have done in terms of adding to the national debt," said Bruce Bartlett, an official in the administrations of Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. He made his comments in a Forbes article titled "Republican Deficit Hypocrisy."

Bartlett said the 2003 Medicare expansion was "a pure giveaway" that cost more than this year's Senate or House health bills will cost. More important, he said, "the drug benefit had no dedicated financing, no offsets and no revenue-raisers. One hundred percent of the cost simply added to the federal budget deficit."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091225/ap_on_bi_ge/us_health_care_deficit

Moran-ick Basterds

[doc03]

1. Does anyone really think Democrats will

cut Medicare by over $500 billion?

[DJ13]

3. Not without gutting it and really hurting seniors

[doc03]

4. So the health-care bill is not really paid for is it n/t

[DJ13]

6. No, not in the current version of "reform"

If they had just done a cost analysis on what it would cost to provide no cost health care (not necessarily insurance) for anyone below a certain income and just increased the income tax accordingly to pay for it this could have really been revenue neutral.

Instead we get half truths, an increase in the deficit, and coverage will still remain costly to those who cant afford it.

All these games just so they dont have to raise taxes on the wealthy.

[johnaries]

5. They're not actually "cutting" Medicare. They expect savings

by cutting Medicare fraud and expected increases.

[doc03]

7. Oh come on I have heard both sides claim they are cutting out

fraud for decades and all we get is more fraud and abuse.

[johnaries]

8. I agree, always noise before. This time they're actually doing something

http://dpc.senate.gov/dpcdoc-sen_health_care_bill.cfm

Reducing waste, fraud and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP will save taxpayer dollars. In private
insurance markets, fraudulent operators prey on small businesses and individuals, using the promise of
low premiums to lure unsuspecting purchasers to buy bogus coverage. The National Health Care Anti-Fraud
Association estimates that fraud amounts to at last three percent of total health care spending, or
more than $60 billion per year. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act includes many policies
that will significantly reduce fraud and abuse in Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP and private insurance.

Increase Funding for Program Integrity
 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will increase funding for the Health Care Fraud and
Abuse Control fund to fight fraud in public programs. The Congressional Budget Office estimates
that every $1 invested to fight fraud results in approximately $1.75 in savings.

Improve Screening of Providers and Suppliers
 The Secretary of Health and Human Services will institute a new screening process for all providers
and suppliers before granting Medicare billing privileges.
States will receive new authority to impose screening procedures on Medicaid providers.
States that do not create effective screening programs could lose federal financial assistance.

Require Providers and Suppliers to Implement Compliance Programs
 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will require providers and suppliers to implement
compliance programs as a condition of participating in Medicare and Medicaid.
New and Enhanced Penalties to Deter Fraud and Abuse
 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will establish new penalties for submitting false data
on applications, false claims for payment, or for obstructing audit investigations related to Medicare,
Medicaid, and CHIP.
 New penalties will be established for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans that violate marketing
regulations or submit information to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

New Tools to Deter Fraud and Abuse in Private Insurance Markets
 The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will create new penalties and enforcement tools to
deter fraudulent health insurances scams, especially through bogus Multiple Employer Welfare
Arrangements (MEWAs).

The Department of Labor will have the authority to shut down fraudulent plans before operators can
inflict financial harm on innocent parties.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will encourage uniform reporting by private health
plans to state insurance departments.

[gratuitous]

2. By mutual agreement

The major media never speak of such things, because the reek of hypocrisy is so strong, it actually comes through the television screen. So, none of the talking chuckleheads mentions it, yet they repeat verbatim ungrounded assertions by the Republicans that any reform package will make the deficit grow.