House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi denounced lawmakers' proposals to raise the Medicare age from 65 to 67 in a USA Today op-ed.
The former Speaker of the House cited research from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the left-leaning Center for Budget and Policy Priorities that suggest the 5 percent annual savings in Medicare touted by proponents of the change would be surpassed by added costs in the form of states' increased Medicaid expenses for uninsured 65- and 66-year olds and higher premiums paid by privately insured youth and older Medicare beneficiaries.
"Raising the Medicare age asks the most vulnerable citizens to pay more with little to show for it in terms of long-term deficit reduction or more affordable care, for seniors or anyone else," Rep. Pelosi said in the article. "It increases health spending across-the-board. It takes money out of the pockets of a small slice of Americans."
Republicans have made raising the Medicare eligibility age a crucial feature in negotiations with Democrats to enact long-term debt-reduction policies as the deadline approaches to avert the fiscal cliff's broadstroke spending cuts.
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CBO: Raising Age for Medicare Would Save $148B Over Next 10 Years
The former Speaker of the House cited research from the Kaiser Family Foundation and the left-leaning Center for Budget and Policy Priorities that suggest the 5 percent annual savings in Medicare touted by proponents of the change would be surpassed by added costs in the form of states' increased Medicaid expenses for uninsured 65- and 66-year olds and higher premiums paid by privately insured youth and older Medicare beneficiaries.
"Raising the Medicare age asks the most vulnerable citizens to pay more with little to show for it in terms of long-term deficit reduction or more affordable care, for seniors or anyone else," Rep. Pelosi said in the article. "It increases health spending across-the-board. It takes money out of the pockets of a small slice of Americans."
Republicans have made raising the Medicare eligibility age a crucial feature in negotiations with Democrats to enact long-term debt-reduction policies as the deadline approaches to avert the fiscal cliff's broadstroke spending cuts.
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CBO: Raising Age for Medicare Would Save $148B Over Next 10 Years