shAARP Talk: Observations from AARP

How do you propose to get Congress to act, and keep it separate from the nonsense David Walker and Glen Beck at CNN spout?

How do you propose to get Congress to act, and keep it separate from the nonsense David Walker and Glen Beck at CNN spout?

I think healthcare is a priviledge, not a right. If one wants to know what a real right is, one only read the Constitution. Where do you think the money for this comes from? Government, of course. But who is that? The government is not only the old, it is the young and middle aged - who have to pay more and more.

As a struggling senior citizen under fixed income I strongly support complete . radical revision of health services, Medicare, etc.

I am in total agreement with your statement. this year the medicare Part B alone, went up more that the small Social Security we receive.

I shudder to think what will happen to the Seniors in just the community where I live. Prices for Groceries increase every day, prescriptions increase every day, gasoline (for those of us fortunate enough to have a car, mine is 12 years old and there is no way I will ever have another one)increases sometimes twice a day. It is not fair to be 75 years old and have to worry about where the next meal will come from, not have even part of what you like to eat because of the cost just to live. I worked for 37 years until my job was "done away with" two years ago. I am begging the Government to think about us, think of how hard we have worked and now it is going for health insurance, prescriptions, gas for a vehicle, and food for our mouth. I sometimes think at night when I'm trying to go to sleep, are the people in Washington ever thinking about us. Congress needs to really dig in and help us out. I'm asking for support for the Senior Citizens in our country.

I'm also concerned that Medicare as we know it will be gone. Where will this madness stop? I work all my life and this is how I'm repaid. Where'd my money go?

I tried to submit my letter, but I was unable to send it because we have a new zip code 80023 and your computer would not recognize it.

Furthermore I was unable to personalize my submission. So you lost my support.

I tried to submit my letter, but I was unable to send it because we have a new zip code 80023 and your computer would not recognize it.

Furthermore I was unable to personalize my submission. So you lost my support.

If you are really concerned about Medicare and Social Security why don't you support The Fair Tax Act? Congressman John Linder (GA) has already introduced this bill.

Asking Congress to keep Medicare premiums from increasing any more than they already have is a good thing. However, suggesting in your form advocacy letter that accompanies the petition that "Congress find another way" to keep costs down scares me. Congress has many options available to it to keep costs of Medicare down that would be far worse than a rise in premiums. Things such as: fewer covered services; forcing all Medicare recipients into managed care, which by its nature often equates to less care and less choice; increasing copayment amounts; raising the age at which a person qualifies for Medicare - and other scary scenarios that would definitely keep costs down - but, at what cost to the Medicare population? Until we (AARP) can suggest a positive solution that we can bring to Congress for keeping monthly Medicare premiums down that does not strip Medicare of the choices recipients currently enjoy - I don't suggest we (AARP) simply implore Congress to "find another way." Congress can't find it's way out of a paper sack with a flashlight! Sherry in St. Louis

We can't ask for special treatment...there are others with needs for health care.

the nation has to find ways to control health care costs..evaluate treatments and needs and effectiveness. Do 89 year olds benefit from mammograms?

medicare could be extended to those over 50 who lack health insurance. As their health costs would be less Medicare would benefit from the added premium.

Extra payment to private plans should be eliminated.

While some people on Medicare are not getting needed treatment others are constantly Doctor shopping looking for cures for conditions for which there are no cures at present.

There should be better treatment for chronic conditions.

It is a crying shame when congress can increase Medicare costs on one stroke of the pen and on the other stroke of the same pen give millions to individuals who are in this country illegality many benifits that only residents of this country should have. SHAME,SHAME, SHAME!!!!

It is a crying shame when congress can increase Medicare costs on one stroke of the pen and on the other stroke of the same pen give millions to individuals who are in this country illegality many benifits that only residents of this country should have. SHAME,SHAME, SHAME!!!!

It is a crying shame when congress can increase Medicare costs on one stroke of the pen and on the other stroke of the same pen give millions to individuals who are in this country illegality many benifits that only residents of this country should have. SHAME,SHAME, SHAME!!!!

It is a crying shame when congress can increase Medicare costs on one stroke of the pen and on the other stroke of the same pen give millions to individuals who are in this country illegality many benifits that only residents of this country should have. SHAME,SHAME, SHAME!!!!

I have NOT signed the petition or filled out the form to send your letter to my Congresspeople because it does not allow me to modify it and I am not in full agreement with what it says. Once again, AARP's stance – like that it took on the doughnut hole – is too inadequate and too unresponsive to the needs of its members.

1. It isn't enough to simply demand a freeze of Medicare charges to beneficiaries. Congress can do that by slicing remuneration to doctors. The result: fewer doctors will accept Medicare patients.

2. We also have to insist -- especially in times of escalating costs -- that doctors do not bear the brunt of our demands. What this means is...

3. We insist on more Government revenues going toward Medicare programs, and if need be, higher taxes to raise those revenues.

Anybody at AARP got the guts to take that kind of a stand?

It is a crying shame when congress can increase Medicare costs on one stroke of the pen and on the other stroke of the same pen give millions to individuals who are in this country illegality many benifits that only residents of this country should have. SHAME,SHAME, SHAME!!!!

It is aconcern of minethat medicare premiums are rising, but what concerns me more is the costs of medications, and what that dam donut holeis going to cost me. It is a crime, the state that plan D medicareis in. these plan companies shouldnot be allowed to dictate what medications you can take. They shouldpay for what the Doctors precribe. these plans with donut holes should not be allowed.there should be some price controls put on the pharmacutical companies .Also gasoline and diesel fuel prices are outrageously high and continuing to go higher. If things , medicall and energyprices donot get more cheaper soon , I wwii be voting for different people to represent me in congress. Sincerely Donald J. Zellner

Why not extend medicare to those HEALTHY people 50 to 55 and older. By paying into the system they will reimburse Medicare for those 65 and older who are generally sicker. Not to mention that employers are more willing to pay for medicare supplementals than full insurance. It would cost less for them to hire seniors and would rebuild the Medicare system for future generations. After all that how social security started.

Have you checked with your Congressman about the validity of e-mail petitions? In the days before e-mail petitions were only valid if signatures were hand written originals, not printed or copied. Signatures were invalid if they appeared more than once on a petition. If I add my name to the petition and forward it to five of my friends and they forward it to five of their friends my name will be on 25 petitions. I hope I've explained this clearly.

Wouldn't the petitions be more creditable if they were forwarded to one person at a time and that person was directed to forward it to only one other person? They could continue to forward every petition they receive, but only add their name to one.

MEDICARE IS WAY OUT CONTRAL START PUTING PEOPLE IN AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE.

MEDICARE IS WAY OUT CONTRAL START PUTING PEOPLE IN AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE.

This is my first venture into the "blog" world, so I hope it works. While I signed the Petition regarding the increase in Medicare premiums and forwarded it to just about everyone I know of eligible age, I received a response that Congress does not acknowledge e-mail petitions. Can anyone out there comment with some degree of reliability about this statement?

I have a very positive view of MediCare. I was paying $248/mo for a Blue Cross / Blue Shield of Alabama plan that had a $2500 deductable. Fortunately, I never had a serious illness or accident that would have put me in the hospital, so I paid for 19 months of "insurance" against bankruptcy due to medical costs. Had I collected, it would have cost me a total of $9712 before collecting.
Since September, 2007, I have paid $93 to Medicare and $93/mo to Mutual of Omaha's United World Insurance subsidiary for their plan G supplement. That's $186/ month. After I paid my $131 deductable for my "Welcome... " physical and blood work for which I was due, I have paid nothing out of pocket for doctors. The premiums went up a whole dollar this year. Boo hoo!
Y'all may not agree w/ me but I think Medicare is very cost effective health insurance.
But wait, it gets even better! Come July, we'll be paying the same, $94 and $94 = $188/mo for my wife as well. For the last 2 years, we've paid $548/mo (when she was 63) and $552/mo (since July 07, when she turned 64) for Insurance w/ BCBS through AHIP, the Alabama Health Insurance Program, for the otherwise uninsurable. Yes, she has pre-existing conditions. So we've paid approximately $6600/yr and would have had to pay another $2500 ($9100 total) before collecting a penny! So we'll be saving $424/mo (248+552-2*188) beginning in July when her Medicare starts.
Don't try to burn the doctors and hospitals! And don't ever think "price controls". Have y'all forgotten the 70's when we had wage and price controls? That had more to do with the gasoline shortage and other unavailablity of products and services than the embargo!

Health insurance costs are sky rocketing. Senior citizens over 70 cannot afford to have higher premiums.Please try to keep the cost of the premiums increase no more than the cost of living increase we get each year. Our senior citizens are getting poorer each year. It is not easy living on Social Security plus a little savings. I would like to see our Congress men and women live on $24,500. per year.

Health insurance costs are sky rocketing. Senior citizens over 70 cannot afford to have higher premiums.Please try to keep the cost of the premiums increase no more than the cost of living increase we get each year. Our senior citizens are getting poorer each year. It is not easy living on Social Security plus a little savings. I would like to see our Congress men and women live on $24,500. per year.

I wrote to AARP, and asked for more details, exactly what 'costs' are you referring to? Regular Medicare costs, or Advantage Program costs? I heard a Congressional hearing on this, I was in the car, so I couldn't take notes, but they were discussing the High costs for the Advantage Program, and the cost of the Federal governments subsidy for it! I was shocked!

The July 16th, issue of 'The Nation' there's an article 'The Medicare Privatization Scam', by Trudy Lieberman. It's fairly hard reading, took me several times, and I'm still not sure I 'got it' all. I do think that if people want this 'Extra' coverage, they should pay any difference over and above, the standard Medicare primium. Most 'poor or poorer' person's living on Social Security, can barely afford basic coverage, and fear having to go see a doctor, becuase of the co-pay, and deductible!

There really is (I've been reading, and studying this for a while now) only one way to Reduce Costs!!Single-payer/Non-profit healthcare for all! Non-Profit doesn't mean, Under-paid healthcare professionals, it means CEO pay, and profits would be capped, at something reasonable! We as a Nation, already pay more then Twice as much, per capita (per person it's over $6,000) in healthcare costs, and we don't cover everyone. The next closest country, that has Universal government run healthcare (I think it's England) is less then half as much! Every other Industrial Nation in the world, besides us, provide Universal Coverage for All their citizens!

The costs in this country, are a product of our For-Profit Hospitals, and For-Profit Insurance (deniers of coverage) Co.!

Medicare has a 3% overhead, vs. 25% to 33% for Insurance Co. A three year audit was just completed, on three states, looking for errors in Medicare Billing. They found an error rate of less then .03%, and the errors were in both directions, over and under billing.

If the government said, that any hospital that received any form of government money, for grants, studies, doctor training programs; must agree to being a part of the Non-Profit (profits are restricted to a % of Gross) network! Open medical schools, to ALL qualified students, particularly Americans! Why should Americans have to go overseas, to attend medical school?? (Yes they do) Let them do 'public service' work to pay off their student loans, Veterans Hospitals, clinics, reservations!

Sorry to go on so long. This topic is very near and dear to my heart! I'm a 100% service-connected war-time disabled veteran, who has no healthcare! My husband, is on Social Security Disablity, because of Polio when he was a child. Neither of us has a doctor, we can see!

If you keep only treating the symptoms (escalating medical insurance premiums), the underlying disorder (ever-growing medical COSTS) will never get fixed. You're asking people to vote for taking all the heat off Congress and simply "paying" for increased COSTS with more government debt, because there's no suggestion in your proposal that anyone has to pay anything.

What you should be advocating is controlling medical COSTS -- clamping down on opportunistic malpractice suits that raise doctors' malpractice premiums and result in all kinds of tests that are medically unnecessary, but which offer some protection for doctors against ...malpractice suits.

Malpractice insurance premiums,unnecessary medical tests, and related legal fees all result in markedly increased medical costs. Interested parties always say malpractice premiums only add "a small amount" to overall medical costs. But nobody wants to address the costs of unneeded medical tests (including the equipment itself) and legal fees, which far outweigh malpractice premiums.

But it's too hard to go after the causes, isn't it? It's easier to propose emotionally-appealing but dishonest symptom-fixes, branding them emergency, temporary fingers-in-the-dike while somebody (else) thinks about addressing the causes. But you know no one else is going to go after the causes, because that would be uncomfortable, unpopular, and difficult, due to the powerful interests feeding at the existing troughs. So ultimately the whole medical system will collapse. In the meantime, pandering congressmen -- both parties, both houses -- will be busy identifying whom they can blame for the disastrous, "unforeseen crisis".

At that point, there'll be a great cry for the government to take everything over. If you think this is a good thing, you need to serve up even one program the government runs efficiently or well. Stay tuned for markedly worse and more costly medical care, rationed to guess who -- you, the patient -- by government clerks in Washington.

Disclaimer: I'm in no way affiliated with any parts of the medical or drug communities, nor am I now or have I ever been a lobbyist. I simply view with a mixture of dread and amusement the ever-increasing something-for-nothing, entitlement mentality that is lovingly nurtured from all points of the political compass. Somebody has to pay for all the freebies. "Somebody" is pretty much the generations coming after us -- our kids and grandkids. We're setting them up to pay dearly for our lack of discipline and courage, and for our profligacy; and they don't even know it yet. But they will...

Trying to regulate a single aspect of the economy is like squeezing a half-inflated balloon in your fingers. As soon as you press down on one bulge, another rises. The only thing that can keep prices down (within reason) is competition in business. Instead of focusing on a single issue, Medi-care premiums, examine the reason that medical costs go up. There are so many rising costs that contribute to rising medical costs that regulating them all would be impossible.
And no. I'm not an M.D., simply a senior with some small knowledge of simple economics.

It seems to me that if the Congress and Senate would stop raiding the Social Security funds to pay for things that the S.S. funds are NOT for. Then, they would or should repay the amounts that have been MISSPENT. Ther might not be any problems with the Social Security account, if, indeed there ever was one. It is my understanding the monies collected have gone into the general fund. Who keeps track of what SHOULD be in that fund and why isn't thwe money collected invested to grow for ALL of us.?????

Yours truly, Ronald e. Mohr.

I understand to well how devastating it can be to lose medicare coverage. My late husband worked when his health permitted. We always reported his income. In 1979 we got a call from the bank that we had no funds in our account. The government had stopped his disability check and medicare coverage.They said that for the last 2 years he has been overpaid totaling 22 thousand dollars. They did admit that technically it was there fault for not catching the error for 2 years but because they had the power we had to pay it back. I told them that my husband would not live long enough to pay that much back because we had no money now to buy his life sustaining medicine. They said that they did not want him to die but did nothing about it. We lost our HUD home and moved into a small home. My husband felt beaten down. He felt like he had nothing left to offer his family (me and my daughter). They took our only income and home. In 7 months he died of a massive heart attack. I had been working part time when I could. He needed me to take care of him most of the time.

I was in a supermarket a couple of years ago and this little elderly lady was walking around with one frozen slab of fish in her cart. She came up to me and asked me if I thought that the fish cost to much and should she buy it. I told her that if she wanted it to go ahead and buy it. She said if she bought it she would not be able to buy her medicine. My heart broke and I was so speechless that I could not even think. It was not until after I got home that I wished I could have kicked myself for not thinking of buying the fish for her. I could only say a prayer for her.

I am 59 years old now and am disabled.My disability started in 1996. I was injured from a fall inside a Target store. There was a really bad place in the floor that they had not repaired. I had to have shoulder surgery and my doctor told me not to continue my job. I was not trained for anything else. The lawyer I retained turned out to be a legal theif. He told me to apply for disability and assured me that I would not have a problem getting it. I was denied even though I had letters from several doctors, psychologist, and my psychiatrist. The judge did not even look at them, he looked at me and said he did not believe a word I was telling him. Eight years later I am sitting here in constant pain. I have had spine surgery, I have a nerve disorder which makes me unable to walk without pain and I have not balance. I could not work if my life depended on it but I do not qualify for diability because I applied for it in 1996 and was denied therefore I have not paid in enough within the last 10 years to qualify. If not for my husband I would be, God only knows where. The government says I didnt make enough money to get disability and I don't qualify for SSI because my husband makes to much money. This I do not understand. What also makes me so mad is that an illegal alien can come over here and immediately receive government assistance. They are sent to college,gotten a job and buy a home all while getting public assistance. My entire for generations back have lived in the United States and paid into the government since it has been in place but when I need help I don't qualify. Something is wrong with this picture. Not having one red penny to call my own leaves me with feeling of worthlessness. I don't like being totally dependent on someone else for everything I need. I would only receive betweet 4 and 5 hundred dollars if I got disability but that would be enough to buy my medicine each month and make me feel like I was contributing something instead of taking all of the time. Needless to say, I am on the band wagon for anything I can do or say to put the government in the hot seat about taking care of their own first. I am so tired of all of the cuts coming from the elderly, disabled and poor. I have a profoundly grandson that turned 19 years old today and his mother has raised him as a single mother and she has not always had the help she needs. He has a lot of needs that medicare want cover and of course the cost of these items price has increased 100% in the last 2 years. Somebody somehow somewhere has to put a stop to this kind of greed. Why doesn't the government disqualify all high income people from getting medicare, pensions,and disability. You can start with all past presidents, their wives. The government already pays them a handsome salary just because of who they are, not to mention the money they spend on body guards and special services for the rest of their lives. The government disqualify us for so many reasons. We are not allowed to own a car, home , property, or any valuable assets because they can be liquidated and become an income. The rich can have anything they want but they don't get disqualified do they? I could go on and on but think you get understand my anger toward my government.

I understand to well how devastating it can be to lose medicare coverage. My late husband worked when his health permitted. We always reported his income. In 1979 we got a call from the bank that we had no funds in our account. The government had stopped his disability check and medicare coverage.They said that for the last 2 years he has been overpaid totaling 22 thousand dollars. They did admit that technically it was there fault for not catching the error for 2 years but because they had the power we had to pay it back. I told them that my husband would not live long enough to pay that much back because we had no money now to buy his life sustaining medicine. They said that they did not want him to die but did nothing about it. We lost our HUD home and moved into a small home. My husband felt beaten down. He felt like he had nothing left to offer his family (me and my daughter). They took our only income and home. In 7 months he died of a massive heart attack. I had been working part time when I could. He needed me to take care of him most of the time.

I was in a supermarket a couple of years ago and this little elderly lady was walking around with one frozen slab of fish in her cart. She came up to me and asked me if I thought that the fish cost to much and should she buy it. I told her that if she wanted it to go ahead and buy it. She said if she bought it she would not be able to buy her medicine. My heart broke and I was so speechless that I could not even think. It was not until after I got home that I wished I could have kicked myself for not thinking of buying the fish for her. I could only say a prayer for her.

I am 59 years old now and am disabled.My disability started in 1996. I was injured from a fall inside a Target store. There was a really bad place in the floor that they had not repaired. I had to have shoulder surgery and my doctor told me not to continue my job. I was not trained for anything else. The lawyer I retained turned out to be a legal theif. He told me to apply for disability and assured me that I would not have a problem getting it. I was denied even though I had letters from several doctors, psychologist, and my psychiatrist. The judge did not even look at them, he looked at me and said he did not believe a word I was telling him. Eight years later I am sitting here in constant pain. I have had spine surgery, I have a nerve disorder which makes me unable to walk without pain and I have not balance. I could not work if my life depended on it but I do not qualify for diability because I applied for it in 1996 and was denied therefore I have not paid in enough within the last 10 years to qualify. If not for my husband I would be, God only knows where. The government says I didnt make enough money to get disability and I don't qualify for SSI because my husband makes to much money. This I do not understand. What also makes me so mad is that an illegal alien can come over here and immediately receive government assistance. They are sent to college,gotten a job and buy a home all while getting public assistance. My entire for generations back have lived in the United States and paid into the government since it has been in place but when I need help I don't qualify. Something is wrong with this picture. Not having one red penny to call my own leaves me with feeling of worthlessness. I don't like being totally dependent on someone else for everything I need. I would only receive betweet 4 and 5 hundred dollars if I got disability but that would be enough to buy my medicine each month and make me feel like I was contributing something instead of taking all of the time. Needless to say, I am on the band wagon for anything I can do or say to put the government in the hot seat about taking care of their own first. I am so tired of all of the cuts coming from the elderly, disabled and poor. I have a profoundly grandson that turned 19 years old today and his mother has raised him as a single mother and she has not always had the help she needs. He has a lot of needs that medicare want cover and of course the cost of these items price has increased 100% in the last 2 years. Somebody somehow somewhere has to put a stop to this kind of greed. Why doesn't the government disqualify all high income people from getting medicare, pensions,and disability. You can start with all past presidents, their wives. The government already pays them a handsome salary just because of who they are, not to mention the money they spend on body guards and special services for the rest of their lives. The government disqualify us for so many reasons. We are not allowed to own a car, home , property, or any valuable assets because they can be liquidated and become an income. The rich can have anything they want but they don't get disqualified do they? I could go on and on but think you get understand my anger toward my government.

I realize that pressing a button on a keyboard is easier than writing, but as someone who has been an organizer for advocacy I know that an individual letter, including email, carries more weight. Still, it's better to take the easy route than not adding any weight at all to this vital effort.

I wrote a email to all of the Senate Body,Wednesday. I'm writing now
with hopes that someone who is in the position of furnishing us with
the names' of our local congess people, as well as Senators. This
way, we each know exactly who to address our email to. If in fact
this is as important of an event, as it is, then we all should have
what is needed to contribute to the cause in a timely manner.

Thanking You In Advance Iam:

Mr. Patrick J. Clancy

we all know congress has let seniors down and have "borrowed"-more like ripped off the excess SS reserve funds and medicare funds. We can point and blame all we want but if the 30 million AARP members dont all stand up right now unified and remind them we are a powerful vote we can only blame ourself when all is lost permanently. I dont think one or two hundred thousand people is enough to shake Washington--its going to take millions who follow through

To quote from your own summary of the problem...

"In June, Congress will decide whether to increase Medicare premiums yet again to cover the cost of paying doctors more. Jacking up Medicare premiums on seniors because Congress has repeatedly failed to fix a flawed system just doesn’t sound very fair."

I'm not clear what you're really saying --

1) Are you saying that doctors and other medical providers should not receive raises that keep up with their costs (i.e., liability insurance premiums, education, etc.)? Or,
2) Are you saying that young people should pay more for their health care so that seniors don't have to pay as much for theirs? Or,
3) Are you suggesting that if the price of health care goes up that Congress needs to use tax dollars to keep it affordable for seniors?

Any of these "solutions" will, in fact, put the burden on others -- but not on seniors. Whether we talk about the costs of health care, or gasoline, or medication, or utilities, or food, or any other of life's "necessities", the conversation presumes that the failure of today's seniors to plan for today's cost of living increases makes it a problem for today's wage-earners to fix.

What about the old saying?: -- "A failure to plan on your part does not make this an emergency for my part." When will we face the fact that this is not a problem that "Congress has repeatedly failed" to address? I think it's simply that workers in the past -- and continuing at an even more disaterous rate today -- have failed to adequately plan for their future needs. Let's put our finger on the real problem -- it is us, not Congress.

If Social Security and Medicare aren't going to be enough to cover our living costs in retirement, then either we need supplemental retirement resources -- or we need to forget about retiring! I simply don't feel right about pointing a finger at the younger generations to fix our problems.

Signed,

A retiree at age 54
(I planned it that way.)

Something needs to be done about the Medicare Part D for medications. There are many seniors out there that are on many medications and needless to say that the donut hole comes very quickly for many of us. The pharmaceutical companies don't want to budge when it comes to reducing the prices of the meds, so people have to search for grant money to pay for their injectable medications. Some of these meds are outrageously expensive and without these meds people can not survive a half way decent life. I think that the government should do away with the Medicare Part D to reach the maximum which puts you into a donut hole, then the patient has to pay for their own meds for full price and the sad part about it is that there are seniors who can not afford to do this.

So it's up to everyone out there to step forward and present your comments and views to make this better for all.

We would also like to urge other seniors and AARP to write Congress and the IRS to stop taxing seniors on their Social Security income. Taxing this income for seniors greatly affects their bottom line as to how much money they have to pay all their bills each month.
What addresses can we write to about this to have the most impact?

Until AARP sees fit to print the bill number and details of the Congressional proposal, all it is doing is fear-mongering of the very worst sort.

Indeed -- at least as I understand it -- the only premium-increase Congress is considering is expanded means-testing.

This impacts only the pampered rich -- the very people whose obscene greed is responsible for runaway health care costs, skyrocketing fuel prices, outsourcing, downsizing, Enron, WorldCom, Bear Stearns, Iraq and every other aspect of the present economic crisis.

Therefore, unless AARP wants to (again) identify itself as a shill for the ruling class -- precisely as it did by its support for the Part D Medicare Prescription Drug Lord Benefit -- the organization would be better off remaining silent.

If murders and automobile accidents are removed or normalized, the US citizens have the longest lifetimes. We also have the most expensive medical system. So it would seem that the effort by everyone, including AARP, should be toward finding ways to reduce the cost of medical care while maintaining or improving the service. We shouldn't be going to Congress, hat in hand, begging for more money.

If murders and automobile accidents are removed or normalized, the US citizens have the longest lifetimes. We also have the most expensive medical system. So it would seem that the effort by everyone, including AARP, should be toward finding ways to reduce the cost of medical care while maintaining or improving the service. We shouldn't be going to Congress, hat in hand, begging for more money.

You need to lower your expectations of what the governement can give. How much taxes do you expect our young families to be able to contribute? They pay huge social security taxes already and probably will not even be able to get it when they retire.

On a fixed income we cannot afford a raise in Medicare Health Insurance.

I am amazed at the simple answer to medical care. Increase coverage, reduce payments to doctors, but don't raise Medicare fees.

Now would it not be simpler to give free medical care to all and lower taxes? That is as plausible a plan as what you propose.

I am not unfeeling for financially stressed individuals who are in that position through no fault of thier own. Unfortunately many did not educate themselves to obtain a financially secure positon, take seriosly the health warnings we've seen for years or live within their means. Now they are facing the consequences. Maybe none of us should pay more and then Medicare could run out sooner!!!

I am concerned about the lack of knowledge about how the health system works by your members and advisors. They lack a systems view of the issue. AARP shoud be calling for rationing and a primary care medical home for everyone, A medical gatekeeper, NOT just for the aged (as I am approching 80 I can say this). Asking to restrain the rise in Medicare premiums is unrealistic. Our system is set up to give everyone in the system anything they wnat. You cannot do this and restrain costs. We need to change the incentives to bring more practitoners into primary care. We need to expand primary care and community health centers. We need to focus on aging and chronic disease. This cannot be donr without a radical change to the health care system. Having practiced, taught and researched the problem for more than 50 years I truly believe we need a change, not just a restraint on Medicare premiuums.

Let the rates go up we don't need more free loaders Government can't take care of everybody.

Unfortunately, if you allow Congress to do the easiest thing for them to do (raising Medicare premiums or expanding (i.e. continually lowering the threshold of) means-testing, that's ALL they will do.

It will take a great amount of political pressure from both sides of this argument to get some sort of central solution that will fix the Medicare problem in a way that doesn't hit any one group too hard. We cannot expect the younger citizens to pay for everything we want. They cannot expect us older citizens to go without adequate medical care.

And notice that I said "adequate". We (and the medical system) also cannot expect to have a system that has no controls on it. We should not be given the newest, heavily advertised drug or procedure unless there is a good justification for not using something else that is cheaper. Or unless we take most of the responsibility for paying for it.

There is no real competition in the medical field, so there must be some monitoring and control of the costs of the decisions made by doctors, and refusal of the Medicare system to pay for things that are obviously unnecessary.

I am not on Medicare yet, plan on working a couple of years before retiring, not like my mother who worked all her life and found living on social security and Medicare, put her in a life style unlike one she had ever known.
In one of your response, I read ladies comments about Medicare is a privilege not a right. I have to take exception to her statement. Like most Americans, I started working on the farm at age 12 and never looked back. Unlike the rich congress members who do have complete insurance coverage, the average person cannot buy good coverage and more money goes to doctors and medication each year. I have paid in to social security my whole life, supporting people like the lady mentioned, and now it’s getting close to my turn. It is a right and we should fight to keep our rights the same if it was the 1st Amendment right being violated.
I don’t really understand how people in AARP expect the members of Congress to improve the life style of Middle America, when all of them have nothing to spend their high salaries on. They don’t pay for insurance, or medication or gas for their cars and in most instances never goes into a grocery store to buy high priced food. How do you expect them to relate to the rest of us? We have created a leader who leads like a dictator and Congress members who live like kings and queens, we are the serfs.

I agree with Sandra Streb!! Take from the rich and give to the poor. Maybe we need several Robin Hoods in congress to help with the fiasco that they (our government)have done with our medical program--among other things--and taken it from the low income people. Why should past dignitaries (wealthy people) have all those special priveleges after they retire? Haven't they had enough!!

Congress does not care about you or me. Their members pay only $1000 per year for complete coverage ( at the finest institutions available ).Freeloaders? I'm impressed that you have more dollars than sense.

Farm state congressmen see nothing wrong in supporting welfare for famers to produce a limited number of crops, corn, wheat, cotton. These subsidies go to a limited number of commerical farms that certainly do not need them. Also, we are subsidizing the production of ethanol which produces either no more or less energy than goes into its production and additionally drive up the price of corn. We also bail out wall street investment firms. But, it is too expensive to fund Medicare properly.
And of course there are the trillions of dollars being spent on Bush's folly.

I TRIED TO SIGN THE PETITION FOR KEEP MEDICARE FAIR AND MY COMPUTOR WOULD NOT LET ME IN SO I COULD SIGN I TRIED FOR 3 DAYS HOW CAN I SIGN UP OR KEEP MEDICARE FAIR THANK YOU

I don't feel very good knowing the "government" is going to regulate my healthcare. I should think the best solution is to force the private insurance companies to treat us fairly. I know many workers who went on strike to assure they would have good retirement benefits, now they are non-existant. There is no health insurance because the union and/or the insurance company said they don't have to pay if Medicare has paid or if they deny the claim. Now what??

I don't think the government can be all things to all people.

Why does one have to make a donation to sign the petition? I am a new member and was quite "put off" that I could get to the petition without completing the donation form