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  • Medicare, Not Vouchers!

    The budget resolution that House Republicans unveiled pushes extreme policies that benefit private corporations at the expense of older and disabled Americans. The plan would undermine and erode the traditional Medicare program that millions depend on, and instead hand them a voucher and a bill for their care.

    • •  The Republican plan shifts costs to older and disabled Americans rather than protecting them.
    • •  The plan would end traditional Medicare and make the pool of beneficiaries in the program smaller, older, and sicker — and ever more expensive to cover.
    • •  The plan doesn't actually help the federal deficit any more than health care reform has already!

    Make no mistake: The Republican plan is nothing new, and nothing good. It hurts American families at a time they can least afford it, while handing over taxpayer dollars to insurance companies.

    Write your Senators and Representatives today using the form below. Tell them that you value traditional Medicare, and won't let it "wither on the vine."

  • Say NO to the Ryan-Wyden Plan for Medicare

    Use the convenient form below to tell Congress the Ryan-Wyden plan won’t do anything to reduce overall health care spending, which is the real problem. Instead, it will likely lead to reduction in benefits and increased cost-sharing for Medicare beneficiaries.

    • Private plans have not saved Medicare money, are more complicated, and often cost more than traditional Medicare.
    • Forcing traditional Medicare to compete with private, for-profit plans is a recipe for disaster. Private plans will lower rates to woo the least costly beneficiaries and those more expensive to treat will remain in traditional Medicare, creating an environment that’s likely unsustainable.
    • It’s traditional Medicare — not private plans — that has been the leader in innovations to keep health costs down and increase quality. 

    Don’t be fooled into thinking this proposal protects and preserves Medicare – it eliminates a unified program.

    Medicare is better and stronger without the Ryan-Wyden plan.

  • End "Observation Status" - Support the Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2011
  • Tell Congress and the Administration: We Can Fix Medicare AND the Deficit

    Help us by calling on the President/Congress to adopt our common-sense solutions as a responsible step in reducing our deficit the right way.

    As lawmakers debate this policy and the future of Medicare as part of broader efforts to address the federal deficit, it's critical to remember that Medicare Works!  Our common-sense solutions promote choice and competition while shoring up the solvency of Medicare.

    Enter your zip code below to send a letter to help us protect Medicare today, and strengthen it for the future.

  • Tell Congress and the Administration: Reform Medicare & Medicaid, Don't Cut Them!

    87 million Americans receive health coverage from either Medicare or Medicaid. Of those, over 80% say that the quality of their health care is excellent or good. That's nearly 70 million potential voters who don’t want you to cut their health care.

    It's time for all policy-makers, to embrace real solutions that save money and STRENGTHEN these programs:

    ·       Negotiate Drug Prices with Pharmaceutical Companies - Negotiating drug prices for Medicare would save taxpayers billions of dollars – potentially over $200 billion over ten years.

    ·       Stop Paying Private Medicare Plans Anything More Than Traditional Medicare - Medicare pays, on average, 10% more for beneficiaries enrolled in private insurance (Medicare Advantage or MA plans) than for comparable beneficiaries enrolled in traditional Medicare. That's just wasted money.

    ·        Include a Drug Benefit in Traditional Medicare - Traditional Medicare's lower administrative costs would free up money for quality care, would result in lower drug prices for beneficiaries, and save taxpayers over $20 billion a year.

    ·       Extend Medicaid Drug Rebates to Medicare Dual Eligibles - Extending rebates for dual eligibles would save at least $30 billion over ten years.

    ·       Let People Between 55 and 65 Enroll In Medicare - Allowing this healthier population to enroll in Medicare would add revenue for people who will typically need less care and fewer services than older and disabled enrollees.

    ·       Let the Affordable Care Act Do Its Job.  Repealing or defunding ACA would add $230 billion to the deficit while ignoring the real issue of rising overall health care costs in our country.

    Tell the administration and Congress that if they allow Medicare and Medicaid to be cut, 2012 will be a very hard year.

  • Let's Really Save Medicare: Ask Your Senators to Vote No on Ryan Budget
    Save Medicare by Ending It?  Reduce the Current Deficit with a Plan for 2022?  Really?

    Comparing Apples & Oranges

    The budget introduced by Rep. Ryan and passed by Republicans in the House of Representatives would eliminate Medicare as of 2022. Instead of guaranteeing coverage for specific health care, like Medicare does, the Ryan Budget would provide a voucher to each eligible person to buy private insurance. The voucher would be worth a flat dollar amount. There is no guarantee that someone would be able to buy insurance for that amount or that if insurance is available, the insurance would cover and pay for the same services as Medicare.

    Let’s stick with what we know: Medicare works.

    Use the following form to Contact your Senators today.

  • Health Reform Makes Medicare Stronger - Help Keep it That Way

    Tell Congress to suport health reform, not weaken or repeal it.

    Send the letter below, or edit it to tell your own story.

  • Seize the Day - Use Your Voice to Pass Health Reform

    Today we are the closest we have ever been to fixing our unfair and ineffective health care system. We must seize this opportunity to pass health reform.

    Use the form below to let your representatives know that you support their efforts to achieve comprehensive health reform legislation, which will improve Medicare, expand health insurance coverage to millions of Americans, help people purchase insurance, and end discriminatory practices by insurance companies.

  • Let Congress know that you want health care reform passed now!

    Having seen the same old debates continue at the health care summit, there is no better time than now to tell Congress to use reconciliation to pass health care reform to expand coverage.

    Congress has used the reconciliation process before to:

         -- Pass COBRA to ensure unemployed people keep their health coverage;
         -- Establish protections for nursing home residents;
         -- Create a health insurance program for children;
         -- Expand the role of private insurance offerings in Medicare;
         -- Change Medicaid eligibility.

    Budget reconciliation can be used now to create health care reform that will:

         -- Expand health insurance to 31 million Americans;
         -- Make insurance more affordable for everyone, including closing the prescription drug coverage gap known as the “donut hole” for Medicare beneficiaries;
         -- Protect against discriminatory practices by insurers;
         -- Reduce fraud and waste;
         -- Reduce the deficit by $100 billion over the next 10 years.

    Show your support.  Write Congress today.

    It's about our health, our economy, and our quality of life. It's about all of us.

  • Real Health Care Reform Must Include a Public Plan Option

    Please consider sending the letter below to tell your elected officials that health care reform must include a true public plan option. A public plan option is essential to true reform because it is rooted in access for all, comprehensive care, community, and cost effectiveness.

    True health care reform must include a public plan option. Without it we lose and private insurance companies win. Without it we lose real change that improves access for everyone, supports comprehensive care and coverage and fosters healthy communities at a price taxpayers can afford.

    A public plan option will improve access:

    • -- Like the successful public Medicare program, the plan should be available to all throughout the United States.
    • -- Premiums should be affordable, with reasonable cost-sharing, with subsidies for lower income people, and with adjustments for regional cost differences.
    • -- Everyone should be able to move freely between whatever plans are offered.

    A public plan option will improve care:

    • -- Health care benefits should be at least as broad as in traditional Medicare.
    • -- Greater emphasis should be placed on primary, preventive, and coordinated care.
    • -- Benefits for mental health, dental services, vision care and eyeglasses, hearing aides, and long-term care should be offered or phased in.

    A public plan option will support healthier communities:

    • -- Education and training should be offered to providers to assure that treatment and patient education is culturally relevant, in order to assure positive health outcomes and minimize the need for more expensive care down the line.
    • -- The public plan should include financial payments to providers for offering interpreter services and for translation of materials into the major languages of the enrollees whom they serve.

    A true public plan option is essential to real reform. Without it, we will have lost the opportunity for health care reform.

    Send a letter today.

  • We Need Real Health Care Reform


    With a public option and a standard set of benefits across all private and public plans, everyone will be better able to access coverage they can understand, at a price taxpayers can afford.  It’s about our health and our quality of life. It’s about all of us.

    Use the letter below to tell Congress today -- health care reform needs a true public health insurance option.  

    Including a personal note about your experiences with health care and Medicare is strongly encouraged.