HOUSE Republican Leader John Boehner

Washington, Feb 25 - House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) issued the following statement on legislation set to be introduced today along with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) to bring stability to the Medicare program as required by the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act:

"It is time for Congress to heed the warning of Social Security and Medicare’s Trustees: the Medicare program cannot continue to effectively serve future generations of seniors without significant reform right now.  If congressional leaders fail to act, the Medicare benefits for scores of American seniors will be jeopardized.      

“As the law requires, Leader Hoyer and I today will introduce the legislative proposal sent to Congress by President Bush earlier this month.  This legislation represents an important first step toward ensuring that Medicare’s focus remains on helping America’s neediest seniors and not trial lawyers or the wealthy.  I am hopeful this legislation can act as a catalyst for Congress to pass long-overdue legislation to bring stability to the Medicare program, and I urge Democratic leaders to bring it up for a House vote. 

“In order to successfully reform the Medicare program, we must reform our medical liability laws to put the interests of seniors ahead of trial lawyers.  More importantly, the Majority must stop voting to cut Medicare benefits and eliminate choices for America’s neediest seniors while the wealthy continue to receive taxpayer dollars.  I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this legislation so that we can begin to bring long-term fiscal stability to the Medicare program.”  

Following is a brief summary of the Medicare reforms included in the bill responding to the funding warning identified in the 2007 Social Security and Medicare Trustees report:  

• Helping America’s Neediest Seniors.  The measure includes reforms designed to ensure Medicare’s focus where it should be: on helping the neediest seniors, not trial lawyers or the wealthy.  Specifically, the bill reduces the Medicare premium subsidy for higher-income individuals in Part D, saving $900 million in 2013 and nearly $3.2 billion over five years. 
• Medical Liability Reform to Put Patients Before Trial Lawyers.  The bill helps boost worker access to quality health care by addressing the skyrocketing cost of medical liability insurance.  The bill would make health care more accessible and affordable in the United States and allow doctors to practice anywhere patients are, not just in states that have enacted reasonable legal reforms to put patients and doctors before the interests of trial lawyers.  
• Consumer-Driven Reforms to Strengthen Patient Care.  The bill authorizes the HHS Secretary to introduce value-driven competition into the Medicare program.  For example, the bill encourages (1) the adoption of health information technology, such as electronic medical records and e-prescribing; (2) transparent pricing information; (3) transparent quality information; and (4) incentives for providers to deliver and beneficiaries to choose high-quality, low-cost health care. 

#####