Burnt Orange Report

Old People Gone Mad!

By Jim Dallas

Adding a real prescription drug benefit to Medicare would be a good idea. Unfortunately, this good idea has been run through the Republican crap-o-lizer one too many times, and the bill which the House of Representatives is planning on taking up this week isn't up to snuff. Despite what the AARP says:

WASHINGTON, Nov. 17 — AARP, the largest and most influential organization of older Americans, threw its weight behind a bill on Monday that offers drug benefits to the elderly as part of the biggest transformation of Medicare in its 38-year history.

President Bush and Republican leaders in Congress stepped up their efforts to win votes for the legislation, which would give private health insurance companies a huge new role in Medicare. AARP's endorsement, long coveted by Republicans in Congress, was considered a critical step in the drive for passage of the legislation this year.

The endorsement provides a seal of approval from an organization with 35 million members. Republicans hope it also provides political cover against charges by some Democrats that the bill would undermine the federal insurance program for the elderly and disabled. The group will support the bill with $7 million worth of newspaper and television advertising this week, and officials said it was prepared to spend more.

Still, some Democrats, led by Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, escalated their attacks on the legislation. Mr. Kennedy called the legislation a dangerous attempt to privatize Medicare, "using our seniors as guinea pigs." Many Senate Democrats were clearly torn over the bill, which delivers a prescription drug benefit the party has sought for many years but would also, many contend, undermine the program over the long term.

Since the insanely-complex bill is still not public, it's hard to put a finger on all the problems with it, but here's a start. The bill has a big coverage hole in it, which means it's great if you have only a few prescriptions or have a lot of prescriptions, but is not-so-great if you're in the middle. It does in fact rig Medicare in favor of privatization. It doesn't include adequate measures to reduce the cost of prescription drugs, which means it's an overly-costly political stinker paid for with borrowed money (and if my future taxes are going to pay for the elderly's prescriptions, then you better believe I oppose this "a joint venture between the Republican leadership and the pharmaceutical industry to destroy Medicare").

And did I mention it's insanely complicated?

Suffice it to say that if I were in Congress right now, I would probably not vote for this GOP Medicare prescription drug bill.

The prescription-drug debacle lends credence to the unflattering caricature of the AARP painted by South Park a few weeks ago (click for QT Video). Truth is becoming stranger than fiction.

But, giving credit where credit is due, there are a lot of rank-and-file AARP members who are justifiably pissed about this endorsement. Click here to see the mostly-negative comments about the endorsement made by AARP members (via Atrios).

For a different opinion, see Nathan Newman.