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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (March 18, 2017)
6 A SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 2017 Consequences of Medicare gaps with ACA repeal The 57 million people enrolled in Medicare, (includ- ing, in 2015, 98.9 percent of adults age 65 or older), face cost and benefit uncertainties if the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is repealed without specific provisions enacted to replace the resulting Medicare gaps. ACA significantly strength- ened Traditional Medicare sol- vency by adding revenue sources to the Medicare Trust Fund and removing statutory impediments to lowering the expensive Medicare Advantage subsidies paid to private health insurers. The current proposals to repeal the ACA would “reform” Medicare by expanding “Medicare Advantage” (built on private insurance companies with limited HMO/PPO net- works), ultimately transforming Medicare from a “defined ben- efit” to a “defined contribution” membership plan. The devil of the reform is in the details of nebulous terms like “choice,” “flexibility,” “modernization,” “vouchers” and “premium support.” We are being told reform is necessary because of traditional Medicare’s impending “insol- vency.” These predictions ignore Medicare’s long history of improving healthcare quality at reduced costs. According to a 2016 AARP finding, “The Medicare Part A Trust fund is solvent until 2028, due in large part to changes made in ACA …without shifting costs to ben- eficiaries or cutting benefits…” On a more immediate health- care quality level, Medicare rules tying care quality to pay- ments has effectively lowered hospital costs and improved the costs are increasing and insur- ers are bailing. Looking again to basic insurance principles, so far no replacement that has been proposed will be work- able or affordable. The “Repealers” have got themselves a tiger by the tail. As for Medicare enrollees, I suspect they mostly are unaware that, without the enactment of a carefully tai- lored bullet proof vest, repeal of ACA’s direct and indirect Medicare supports will likely bring the collapse of Traditional Medicare. — Arnold Buchman retired as GUEST VIEWPOINT B Y A RNOLD B UCHMAN CIGNA H EALTHCARE ’ S WESTERN DIVISION RETIRED HEAD OF LEGAL SUPPORT FOR quality of hospital care by imposing reimbursements cuts for high rates of patient injuries from infections, bed sores and falls. In 2015, 769 hospitals were penalized. According to healthcare economist, Uwe Reinhardt, “Per capita, health costs for people with Medicare have grown [annually at] 1.5 per- centage points less than private insurance from 1969 through 2012. Private insurers simply lack Medicare’s leverage.” At the individual level, repeal of ACA would take with it the phased reduction of the prescription drug “doughnut hole” for prescription drugs (to be closed by 2020) that signifi- cantly lower the amount that seniors on Medicare have to pay for their medicines. ACA’s constraints on out-of- pocket drug prices will be elim- inated and preventive health services no longer will be free. In reforming Medicare with “premium support” vouchers to enable a “free market” for enrollees to shop among com- peting policies, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan’s proposal would also increase Medicare eligibility age — and conse- quently instantly shrink the risk pool to a higher proportion of more costly, sicker members. Basic insurance principles dictate that this would require premium increases to cover increased benefit costs. Vouchers paid from the Medicare Trust Fund to subsi- dize Medicare Advantage would attract the younger and healthier from traditional Medicare, exacerbating higher cost-sharing in a smaller risk pool — the definition of an insurance “death spiral” and collapse of the risk pool. At the same time, ACA repeal would restore higher payments for services per- formed under Medicare Advantage managed care. The repeal of ACA’s mandate that preventive services be provided free to patients could also raise premiums, out-of-pocket costs, or both. All in all, Medicare enrollees are quite likely to receive less care and pay more for it. The bottom line? An analysis by CNN Money said that ACA “slowed the growth of payment rates to hos- pitals and other providers, reduced payments to Medicare Advantage plans and improved benefits for enrollees.” According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), repealing ACA would increase Medicare spending by $802 billion over 10 years. As a result of repeal, Medicare bene- ficiaries would pay more because premiums and deductibles are tied to the growth of federal outlays. This would leave seniors to face higher deductibles and co- payments for Part A and higher premiums and deductibles for Part B. Enrollees would no longer have free screenings for breast and colorectal cancer, heart disease, diabetes and free flu and pneumonia vaccina- tions. Clearly, ACA is imperfect. As was Social Security and Medicare when they first were enacted. But as the flaws in these earlier programs became apparent, bipartisan fixes were enacted. In ACA’s eight years, there has been no such bipartisan approach. Instead, there has been a steady partisan effort to weaken, undermine and under- fund it. It’s no wonder that exchanges are failing, premium head of legal support for CIGNA Healthcare’s western division. He is a Senior Advisor to The Margolin Group, a designer of integrated health care systems. THE PIONEER MUSEUM NEEDS YOU! Th e Siuslaw Pioneer Museum is putting together a history of Th e Rhododendron Festivals from 1908 to the present. Look in your closets and attics and fi nd all your pic- tures, slides, scrapbooks, souvenirs and fun memories that we can use in the printing of our book, and bring them to the museum, preferably on Wednesdays, for noon to four o’clock. Th ank you in advance for helping make this project a success. Sandy Zinn, 541-997-7884 ext. 1 Frank’s 101 Barbershop WELCOMES JEFF STONELAKE Jeff was raised in Florence. He is a Air force Veteran of 27 years. Jeff recently lived in Bend, but is HAPPY to be living back in Florence. Stop by and say hello! Reno ‘Select’ at Westminster Jeffs hours are: Tuesday - Saturday 8am-5pm (cell) 530-575-8251 (shop) 541-902-9588 396 Highway 101, Florence S IUSLAW N EWS Spruce Point Assisted Living & Memory Care Living, Loving, & Thriving T g Caring for a a loved loved be very disease overwhelming. Caring for one one with can Alzheimer’s or other memory related illnesses can be very overwhelming. We’re here to help. We are here to help. TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2017 @ 2PM WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2:00 PM Managing Challenging Behaviors & Support Group Holiday Tips for Families & Caregivers TUESDAY, APRIL 25, 2017 @ 2PM WEDNESDAY, Communication JANUARY 21, 2015, & 2:00 PM Successful Support Group Alzheimer’s Disease: The Truth Behind the Myths TUESDAY, MAY 23, 2017 @ 2PM PHOTO BY MARK BRENNAN/SIUSLAW NEWS Reno, a Miniature American Shepard, and her owner Ginny Verville, recently went to New York to compete in the 2017 Westminster Club Dog Show. Reno recieved the ribbon for finish- ing ‘Select,’ or second place overall. Verville is the owner of Aloha Pet Grooming, located in Florence. Siuslaw News + 240 Nutritional Needs 18, 2015, 2:00 PM WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY All seminars are free and open to the public. All seminars are free and open to the public. Refreshments provided. Refreshments provided. To register for these free To register for these free events please call call events please (541) 997-6111 997-6111 (541) or or email email us us at at rkilfoy@prestigecare.com ldouda@prestigecare.com Dementia Drugs; Facts and Myths Exposed TUESDAY, JUNE 27TH, 2017 @ 2PM Maximize Enjoyment WEDNESDAY , MARCH 18, 2015, 2:00 PM Successful Communication Tips & Strategies to TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2017 @ 2PM Learn the “Best Friends” Approach to Caring for a Loved Communicate with Someone Affected by one with Dementia Prestige Senior Living Memory Loss Spruce Point Assisted Living & Memory Care 375 9th Street Florence, Oregon 97439 an assisted living and memory care community www.spruce-point.com HOURS Spring is on it’s way...and so are the new class offerings at LCC Florence! Is your family prepared? Drop by the Florence Center or go online to register today! Classes start April 3! If an emergency happens in your community, it may take emergency workers some time to reach you. You should be prepared to take care of yourself and your family for a minimum of 240 hours. Get your emergency fi rst aid kit started with these essentials: ❑ First aid manual ❑ Aspirin or pain relievers ❑ Laxatives, diarrhea medicine ❑ Rubbing alcohol, petroleum jelly ❑ Soap, salt, baking soda ❑ Sanitary napkins, matches ❑ Triangular bandages ❑ Elastic bandages, pressure dressings ❑ Cotton balls, disposable diapers ❑ Scissors, needles, tweezers ❑ Popsicle sticks, splints, heavy string ❑ Thermometer, paper tape ❑ Syrup of Ipecac ❑ Personal prescription medications This message brought to you by the West Lane Emergency Operations Group. www.wleog.org www.shoppelocal.biz IDENTIFY • PREPARE • SURVIVE 0BL4UttXXXMBOFDDFEVDF
