Obama's inaugural speech triggers reaction, analysis regarding his Medicare view

The Medicare NewsGroup: With Second Term Underway And Budget Battle Ahead, Obama's Medicare Legacy Is Not Yet Written
When President Obama came to power, he carried with him the promise to extend health care coverage to all, regardless of a person's income or medical history. He also promised to improve Medicare by cutting costs, increasing quality and stemming fraud and abuse. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), a controversial piece of health care reform legislation and the signature legislative victory of Obama's first term, was his solution. It extended the solvency of the Medicare Hospital Insurance (Part A) trust fund from 2016 to 2024 and created new programs to test new payment and delivery models in an effort to improve care and lower costs. Even with a major health care reform bill under his belt, Obama's legacy on health care, and Medicare in particular, isn't set (Sjoerdsma, 1/21).

The Medicare NewsGroup: Fact/Fiction: Raising The Medicare Eligibility Age Would Save The Program Money
Deficit hawks have long argued that raising the Medicare eligibility age is a good way to reduce entitlement spending. It has routinely been part of Republican, and sometimes bipartisan, proposals to reform the program. Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) fiscal year 2013 budget proposal would raise the eligibility age from 65 to 67 years by two months a year starting in 2022, until it reaches 67 in 2033; and the bipartisan Burr-Coburn deficit reduction plan would gradually raise the age to 67 by 2027. The Facts: This is fact. The federal government would spend less on the Medicare program because costs primarily would be shifted to individuals, employers and state government programs. They would, collectively, pay more for health care services than Medicare would pay to cover the same group of people (Sojerdsma, 1/22).