Tough choices for all for Medicare

Published 12:00 am Thursday, January 6, 2011

A recent Associated Press-GfK poll indicates working people paying into the Medicare program now believe they should get the money they have put in over the years back in the form of medical services.

The AP reports that with the rising costs of health care services, that is not likely to happen. The other misconception by most people polled, however, is that money the federal government takes from employees and employers is used for health insurance when the employee is eligible for the program at age 65 and older.

Are we really that naïve?

However the original Medicare plan was supposed to work, costs and expectations have risen so that, according to an example given in an AP story, a couple could put in as little as a third of what they would probably use. Money that is taken for the program now is used for seniors already in the program.

As frightening as this sounds, there is something scarier. The number of seniors covered by the program now, the first year baby boomers reaching 65, will almost double by the time the last of the boomers reach 65 in almost 20 years. At the same time, the ratio of workers paying taxes to support the program will drop from 3.5 workers for every recipient of Medicare services to 2.3. It cannot sustain itself.

At first blush, one might think that the easy answer is to increase taxes. That certainly would be the easy answer for Congress, considering older people who use Medicare benefits — income has nothing to do with eligibility — are the people most likely to vote.

But should taxes be raised?

We have a president now who has no problem with raising taxes. In his philosophy, that seems to be a good plan. The more government does, the better it is for the people of the United States.

Prior administrations that claimed to have a philosophy of “smaller government is better” did not work toward that ideological bent. Difficult choices were not made. Bureaucracy was left to become more bloated.

In this day, when most job increases appear to come from government and most reductions of force from the private sector, one has to stop and question at what point will government be unable to sustain itself?

Many would say the time is now.

Yet, while we watch the Medicare program flounder in funding vs. services provided, this country is poised to take over more health insurance.

Congress has a difficult job ahead of it, but so too does the electorate. In a day and age when we judge our members of Congress by how much money it “brings back,” we the people have to make tough choices to wean ourselves from the government teat. Nothing that comes from the federal government is free. We as a free people are entitled only to opportunity.

JEFF ZERINGUE

MANAGING EDITOR