Medicare is the second largest Ponzi Scheme in human history.If you are referring to Social Security, the Medicare situation is much, much worse.
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Posted on 03/04/2008 2:10:48 PM PST by BGHater
Medicare is poised to wreak havoc on the economy. And our presidential candidates are avoiding the issue.
Twice I have asked Alan Greenspan what he considers the greatest threat to the U.S. economy, and both times he has answered immediately with a single word: Medicare. He isn't so worried about the trade deficit and the housing crash; he figures market forces will sort them out. But Medicare is something else - a multitrillion-dollar problem that's about to get dramatically worse, and one that nobody wants to talk about. You'd think that the greatest threat to America's economy would be Topic A for the presidential candidates. But it's actually a topic they hate to touch.
Especially now. An analysis of their speeches shows that last year Senators Hillary Clinton, John McCain, and Barack Obama would occasionally mention the Medicare mess. But recently, with the economy slowing and voters feeling insecure, all three candidates have turned more populist: Their economic talking points are about feel-good reassurances, not about facing hard realities.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
Ping list for the discussion of the politics and social (and sometimes nostalgic) aspects that directly effects Generation Reagan / Generation-X (Those born from 1965-1981) including all the spending previous generations are doing that Gen-X and Y will end up paying for.
Freep mail me to be added or dropped. See my home page for details and previous articles.
And the first is Social Security? Am I right? Do I win the prize?
If not we can just tax smokers and that will pay for everything
Medicare is the second largest Ponzi Scheme in human history.If you are referring to Social Security, the Medicare situation is much, much worse.
source
The only politically possible way out of this mess is means-testing. Democrats will demagogue all day about how cuts in Medicare will cause seniors to drop dead. Let them try and explain why we should pay trillions for seniors who could afford to pay their own bills.
This is not a perfect solution, but it’s one that might have a chance of saving our butts. Medicare is unconstitutional anyway, but the Constitution isn’t all that politically popular, I’m sorry to say.
It’s never enough no matter who is spending it.
bttt!
There is no obesity problems in Cuba. Of course "Sicko" didn't mention that the lack of obese issues is the fact that food is rationed and most Cubans go to bed with empty stomachs!
Of course the Ruling Class doesn't have that problem.
The same government that made the Indian treaties will take care of your medical care.
How will you “means-test” it?
I’m gonna go get my prostate checked out in India
For starters, 1 percent of liquid assets is the annual deductible. Got a million bucks? Great. The deductible is 10 grand. Most people could get some kind of insurance to cover that.
One could throw some ifs, ands, and buts in there as well, but this little measure would do wonders toward getting Medicare in balance.
I had my prostate checked yesterday at the local chinese masage place. Turned out to be A-OK!
Yeah baby!
The irony being that the old fogeys voting for cigarette tax increases and smoking bans are the ones who really suck up all the health care $.
I can't wait to watch the republic burn.
I have a good stockpile of ammunition.
Would this be self-administered or would another federal bureaucracy need to be formed? Who would enforce it?
(Whoops, accidentally did that a private reply. Man, I’m tired. Sorry, RichardW. Here’s the public reply—same thing.)
Any means testing would require more bureaucracy. Presumably, the Health Care Financing Administration would have to work jointly with the Internal Revenue Service. I of course find the implications disturbing, but it’s the least worst idea I can think of that might actually get implemented. To solve a 19 trillion dollar problem, one must look at “least worst” options.
But if anyone has a better plan, I’m willing to hear it.
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