WASHINGTON — In many ways, seniors have the least to gain from an overhaul of the health care system. Thanks to Medicare, they're the only age group that already has universal coverage. And they have had a drug benefit since 2006.
That's why, in national surveys, seniors are significantly less likely than younger adults to say they expect to benefit from a national health overhaul. A June survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found just 21 percent of people 65 and over say their families would be better off with a health care revamping, compared to 43 percent under 65. (Kaiser Health News is a program of the foundation.)
That's worrisome for people wanting to pass the legislation. Seniors "are the biggest voting bloc, so it's hard to see how this will all pass without seniors getting behind it," said Jim Furman, the chief executive of the National Council on Aging.
To try to win over skeptical seniors, President Barack Obama and lawmakers are proposing ways to strengthen Medicare and lower seniors' out-of-pocket costs.
On Monday, for example, the pharmaceutical industry announced a deal with the White House and the Senate Finance Committee to cut their brand name prices in half for seniors after they reach a Medicare coverage gap known as the "doughnut hole." The agreement is contingent on enactment of broad health care legislation.
The timing of the announcement was crucial.
Just days before, Obama's hopes for major health changes took a hit when the Congressional Budget Office issued unexpectedly high cost estimates for Democratic Senate plans. Moreover, hospital and doctor groups had just begun to criticize Obama's proposed $600 billion in cuts to Medicare and Medicaid to help fund coverage for the uninsured over the next decade. The provider groups argue that the cuts would hurt their ability to serve elderly and other patients.
The drug agreement gave AARP officials ammunition to say that their over-65 members would gain from an overhaul. "This will help quite a bit, as the doughnut hole has been the biggest complaint from our members," John Rother, AARP's executive vice president for policy and strategy, said in an interview.
Jack Hoadley, a research professor at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute, said, "If seniors feel like something is in the reform plan for them, such as fixing the doughnut hole, it can have key consequences," for the legislation's chances.
AARP has yet to endorse any health bill, despite pleas from Democrats. Still, it has a big stake in a successful overhaul: Half its 40 million members are under 65. Overhaul advocates say those younger members stand to win big from having a guaranteed, affordable insurance option, especially if they lose their employer-provided coverage in the economic slowdown.
Some seniors back an overhaul, in part because of concern about their children and other family members.
"I am happy as hell with Medicare compared to being under private insurance all those years," said John Martin, 78, of Boynton Beach, Fla. "My only wish is that my children and grandchildren could have a plan like Medicare."
Others are leery of any government changes. Patrice Lynch, 58, who works at a Birmingham, Ala., seniors' center and gets insurance through her husband's employer, said, "I just don't trust the government, and think that with any reforms I'll still have to pay through the nose when I get to retirement age."
E-Mail
Print
