Romney calls for increase in Medicare eligibility age

Boston Globe: Romney Would Raise Age For Social Security and Medicare In Cost-Cutting Plan
Mitt Romney unveiled a sweeping budget-cutting plan today that would increase the eligibility age for Social Security and cap Medicaid payments to states. Romney's plan would also increase the eligibility age for Medicare and allow seniors to choose between the government-sponsored plan and private insurance. ... [According to Romney] "block grants have huge potential to generate both superior results and cost savings by establishing local control and promoting innovation in areas such as Medicaid and Worker Retraining. Medicaid spending should be capped and increased each year by CPI + 1%" (Slack, 11/4).

The Associated Press: Romney Proposal Would Privatize Part Of Medicare
He addressed the lightning-rod issue and other spending cuts during a fiscal policy speech before an afternoon gathering of conservative activists at the Washington Convention Center, where the tea party-allied group Americans for Prosperity is holding a two-day event. ... On Medicare, Romney's plan is remarkably similar to the controversial proposal released by Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan earlier in the year. Romney hasn't finalized many details, but he would offer future Medicare recipients an effective voucher to spend on private insurance or a version of the traditional program (Peoples, 11/4).

Politico: Romney Dodges Ryan In Medicare Plan 
But Romney's proposal parts ways with Ryan in one critical way: Unlike Ryan's plan, Romney would keep traditional Medicare as one option for seniors. The greatest criticism of Ryan's plan was that he would have changed the traditional Medicare program for future seniors -; turning it into a system of subsidies for private insurance -; without giving them the option of staying in the original program.  ... Romney's plan would provide seniors the option of traditional Medicare or getting "premium support" to obtain a private insurance plan with similar benefits. He didn't specify how stringent the requirements would be or how much the premium support would be (Haberkorn, 11/4).

The Washington Post: On Romney's Medicare Plan, A Devil In the Details
But the devil still remains in some details about how the plan would ensure affordable Medicare for seniors and how much the changes could drive down Medicare costs (Kliff, 10/4).

TIME has a transcript of Romney's remarks.

See related KHN articles:

Study Finds Raising Medicare Age Would Shift Costs (Carey, 3/29). 

CBO: Seniors Would Pay Much More For Medicare Under Ryan Plan
Understanding Rep. Ryan's Plan For Medicare