Information Alert: Turning Off the Medicare Trigger
Today the House will consider H. Res. 1368, which would unfortunately turn off the Medicare cost-containment “trigger” for the remainder of the 110th Congress.
- The Medicare “trigger,” incorporated into the Medicare Modernization Act at the behest of Chairman Hensarling and the Republican Study Committee in 2003, requires the President to submit, and Congress to consider, legislation when the Medicare trustees issue a warning that the program is growing at an unsustainable rate.
- Complying with the trigger would mean that Medicare would grow by a mere $179 billion, instead of $181 billion, over the next five years — but it would send an important message that the US government is firmly committed to the cause of entitlement reform.
- Democrats have criticized the trigger as being an “arbitrary” measure of Medicare’s fiscal solvency, but the Medicare trustees note that the program faces nearly $86 trillion in unfunded obligations. Some conservatives may question how much larger this “arbitrary” figure must grow for the majority to take action reforming entitlement spending.
- Today’s resolution would prevent consideration of legislation that would make billionaires like Warren Buffett and George Soros pay more for their Part D prescription drug coverage. At a time when Democrats want to raise taxes on wealthy Americans, conservatives may question why Democrats object to making Ross Perot pay $2 per day more for his prescriptions to help restore Medicare’s fiscal solvency.
- Today’s resolution would also prevent the consideration of reasonable medical liability reform legislation that would reduce the growth in Medicare spending by cutting down on defensive medicine practices. Many conservatives may support taking steps to protect doctors from frivolous lawsuits, and question why Democrats are once again rushing to defend trial lawyers.
- Less than 24 hours after approving legislation that many conservatives considered a massive bailout associated with the housing market, this Democrat resolution would do nothing to resolve an entitlement crisis that by some estimates could be 70 times larger than the worldwide losses from subprime loans. In fact, some conservatives may believe that turning off the trigger is worse than doing nothing, because it prevents Members who believe in the need for entitlement reform from taking action in the face of Democrat intransigence.
- As this Democrat Congress has dedicated floor time to debate subjects such as monkey bites, bilge water discharge, and the sale of wild burros, many conservatives may believe Congress would be better off spending its time addressing Medicare’s $86 trillion in unfunded obligations.