Pittsburg Tribune Review Editorial
The Medicare drug benefit: Empty promises
Monday, December 19, 2005
The Medicare drug benefit is dragging the nation deeper into socialized medicine. At the same time, it is subsidizing companies that provide retiree drug coverage that is becoming too expensive to bear.
A survey conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Hewitt Associates says 79 percent of large companies with prescription coverage for retirees will accept the government handout next year of up to $826 per retiree on average.
Those subsidies are nice sums, courtesy of the American taxpayer. As health-care costs continue rising and employers are squeezed by paying benefits to people off the payroll, there likely will be a trend to dump drug plans.
A vicious cycle is born. Young folks, take note. Your health care coverage will become more expensive in terms of co-pays and payroll contributions. In addition, higher taxes to support the health care of growing numbers of Medicare beneficiaries will hinder you from investing in your own future.
Had this nation made another decision 40 years ago -- by establishing broad tax-advantaged programs so that workers could themselves plan sensibly for retirement -- we would not be seeing pension and health plans workers counted on falling into insolvency.
Instead of correcting that error, the government exacerbates it.
Young workers have not fully experienced the cruelly empty promises of socialism. Trust us, they will.
Good point.
Instead of going after the root cause they just figure how to make others pay for it. Not themselves of course. They make sure thier rate of benefit increases and salaries stay ahead of the increase curve they are creating.
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