Today's bipartisan and veto-proof vote sends a strong signal that improving care for seniors and ensuring fair payment for providers will not be held hostage to the White House's insistence on bloated, unnecessary subsidies for private health insurance plans that participate in Medicare.
The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act is essential legislation that will enhance preventive and mental health benefits for our seniors. This critical bill will also strengthen care for rural Americans, and ensure that we maintain access to doctors who care for Medicare beneficiaries by making sure they are more fairly reimbursed for their work. That is why this bill enjoys the support of the American Medical Association, the National Council on Aging, and the National Committee to protect Social Security and Medicare.
We are hopeful that the White House will remove its rigid, ideological objections to this bipartisan bill so that we can get about the job of improving Medicare for America's seniors.