Posted on 02/21/2013 5:41:43 PM PST by Lorianne
Though Democrats denied it during the 2012 campaign, Obamacare cut Medicare by $716 billion in order to partially fund $1.9 trillion in new entitlement spending over the next ten years. A big chunk of those Medicare cuts came from the market-oriented Medicare Advantage program. Cleverly, the Obama administration postponed the Medicare Advantage cuts until after the election, so as to persuade seniors that everything would be just fine. But the election is over. On Friday, the administration announced that it would be significantly reducing funding for the popular program. Obama’s proposal, according to one analyst, “would turn almost every plan in the industry unprofitable.”
New rates to be ‘enormously disruptive’ The new rates proposed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a.k.a. CMS, will have the net effect of reducing payments to Medicare Advantage plans by 7 to 8 percent in 2014, according to Citi managed care analyst Carl McDonald. “This includes the 2.3% reduction in per capita growth rate announced by CMS on Friday, and estimated 2-3% drop as rates move to parity with fee for service…a 1.5% reduction associated with the change in coding intensity adjustment” and the 2% health insurance premium tax. “These negatives are partially offset by an estimated 1% benefit from improved Star quality ratings, re-basing, better risk scores, and fee for service normalization, resulting in an overall decline of 7-8%,” wrote McDonald yesterday in a note to clients.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
The Obama Campaign’s $8 Billion Taxpayer-Funded Medicare Slush Fund
We’ll never see it reported in the MSM, but the budget cuts and Death Panels will be a big factor in the long term finances of Medicare and Soc Sec.
Every year off the lifespan is a huge $$ savings.
Always was smoke and mirrors and would not/could not exist unless the Feds(American taxpayer)incentivized it. Very much like every Green project from battery powered cars , to windmills to any other hair brained scheme out there.
“market-oriented Medicare Advantage program”
Which is exactly why he went after it with a vengeance.
What I do know, all American citizens WILL lose; in every way possible.
Ping for later
Which, being a cynic, could be why there was so little outcry from our medical establishment about Obammycare in the first place.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.