The following op-ed by Senate candidate Adam Hasner appears in today's Orlando Sentinel:
Ryan plan preserves Medicare for seniors
Orlando Sentinel
Adam Hasner
Orlando Sentinel
Adam Hasner
June 17, 2011
Medicare is going broke. That's not Republican spin or Democrat spin. It's a fact.
And it's not far off. Medicare's trustees recently said its eventual collapse has been accelerated. I'm 41. Before I turn 55, the main trust fund in Medicare will be depleted.
Saving Medicare is going to require reforming Medicare, and that means moving past politics as usual.
According to StateHealthFacts.org, Florida has nearly 2 million Medicare beneficiaries under the age of 75. These Floridians face the real possibility of living to see drastic cuts to their benefits. Crueler still, seniors like my mom and dad, who are nearing retirement age, may have Medicare benefits for only a few years before the rug is pulled out from under them.
House Republicans, led by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, wrote a plan that balances the budget, pays down the debt, cuts spending and saves Medicare. I support it.
The Ryan plan saves Medicare without making any changes for current beneficiaries or seniors close to enrolling. Future retirees — Americans like me who are 55 or younger — will be offered essentially the same kind of health plan as members of Congress receive, a payment-support system where they pick from approved plans. Poorer and sicker seniors get more money. Wealthy seniors get less.
And it's not far off. Medicare's trustees recently said its eventual collapse has been accelerated. I'm 41. Before I turn 55, the main trust fund in Medicare will be depleted.
Saving Medicare is going to require reforming Medicare, and that means moving past politics as usual.
According to StateHealthFacts.org, Florida has nearly 2 million Medicare beneficiaries under the age of 75. These Floridians face the real possibility of living to see drastic cuts to their benefits. Crueler still, seniors like my mom and dad, who are nearing retirement age, may have Medicare benefits for only a few years before the rug is pulled out from under them.
House Republicans, led by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, wrote a plan that balances the budget, pays down the debt, cuts spending and saves Medicare. I support it.
The Ryan plan saves Medicare without making any changes for current beneficiaries or seniors close to enrolling. Future retirees — Americans like me who are 55 or younger — will be offered essentially the same kind of health plan as members of Congress receive, a payment-support system where they pick from approved plans. Poorer and sicker seniors get more money. Wealthy seniors get less.
