October 2012 has arrived; 3/4 of 2012 now in the books ...

Each Monday, I normally enjoy a Noon luncheon with fellow Rotarians.  A look at this month in the Rotary Club of Cedar Rapids ...

• October 1, 2012 - Lois Buntz, Club President - The Rotary International Convention
• October 8, 2012 - Iowa Legislature Debate - House Speaker Kraig Paulsen (Republican) and Senate Appropriations Chair Robert Dvorsky (Democrat)
• October 15, 2012 - Congressman Bruce Braley, Democratic incumbent for Iowa's new First Congressional District
• October 22, 2012 - United States Senator Charles Grassley
• October 29, 2012 - Ben Lange, Republican candidate for Iowa's new First Congressional District.

Today, at Rotary, two articles were mentioned as the 2012 Judicial Retention Election Vote comes on Election Day, November 6, 2012.

• THE REGULARS: Outrage over court's gay marriage decision rings hollow - Christopher Rants for the Sioux City Journal
• On the bus, but out of context - Todd Dorman for The Gazette

National Action Alert

Ryan Medicare Plan

Mr Robin B Tucker,

With an estimated 10,000 baby boomers retiring each day, and declining numbers of workers paying into the program to support Medicare beneficiaries, Medicare has become the target of lawmakers who say reform is necessary if it is to survive.

Vice Presidential candidate and House Budget Chairman, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), has proposed a plan that he says would put Medicare on a sustainable path. But most Democrats don’t agree. Vice chairman of the Joint Committee on Taxation, Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) says the Ryan Medicare plan would primarily benefit only a select few.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)
“Unless Congress fixes what’s broken in Medicare, without breaking what’s working, the program will end up causing exactly what it was created to avoid – millions of American seniors without adequate health security and a younger working generation saddled with enormous debts to pay for spending levels that cannot be sustained.

“It is morally unconscionable for elected leaders to cling to an unsustainable status quo with respect to America’s health and retirement security programs. Current seniors and future generations deserve better than empty promises and a diminished country. Current retirees deserve the benefits around which they organized their lives. Future generations deserve health and retirement security they can count on. By making gradual structural improvements, Congress can preserve America’s social contract with retired workers.”

Rep. Ryan says his proposed Medicare plan would achieve these goals:

• Strengthen health and retirement security by taking power away from government bureaucrats and empowering patients with control over their care.
• Repeal the new health care law’s unaccountable board of bureaucrats empowered to cut Medicare in ways that would jeopardize seniors’ access to care.
• Save Medicare for current and future generations, with no disruptions for those in and near retirement.
• For younger workers, when they become eligible, Medicare would provide a premium-support payment and a list of guaranteed coverage options – including a traditional fee-for-service option – from which recipients can choose a plan that best suits their needs.
• Program growth would be determined by a competitive-bidding process – with choice and competition forcing providers to reduce costs and improve quality for seniors.
• Premium support, competitive bidding, and more assistance for those with lower incomes or greater health care needs would ensure guaranteed affordability for all seniors.

Rep. Ryan adds, “Letting government break its promises to current seniors and to future generations is unacceptable. The reforms outlined in the budget passed by the House protect and preserve Medicare for those in and near retirement, while saving and strengthening this critical program so that future generations can count on it to be there when they retire.”

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY)
“Despite recent polls indicating overwhelming support to keep Medicare intact, House Republicans continue to support the Ryan Medicare Plan that would end the Medicare guarantee and transform it into a privatized voucher system. The Congressional Budget Office calculated an approximate $6,400 increase in annual out-of-pocket health care costs for seniors by 2022 if the Ryan Medicare plan were to be enacted.

"For 47 years Medicare has provided access to quality health care for seniors and people with disabilities. The Affordable Care Act strengthened Medicare, extended its solvency, increased benefits and reduced prescription drug costs for our seniors. Over 2.8 million New Yorkers of all ages depend on the healthcare services provided by Medicare. So far this year, more than 71,000 New Yorkers with Medicare saved over $45 million on prescription drugs and nationally over one million people have already saved over $680 million.

“The proposed Ryan Medicare Plan focuses on a system that benefits a few while the rest of America gets dealt an unfair hand. Rather than ending Medicare, we should be working together to preserve and strengthen it for future generations. This program is one of the proudest achievements of the Democratic Party, and we will continue to defend the program and the principles for which it was created in 1964.”

Do you think Congress should pass the Ryan Medicare Plan? (Click Here)

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