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Vol. 2, No. 12.
(July 29,
2007)
Proudly representing retirees from the new
AT&T Midwest Region, SBC Midwest Region, Ameritech, as well as the
five Bell Companies in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and
Wisconsin
ACTION ALERT FROM THE National Retiree Legislative Network:
Retiree Network Leader Calls For U.S. House To Pass
Children's Health And Medicare Protection Act
Healthcare Bill
(HR3162)
Would Benefit Uninsured Children And Medicare Participants
WASHINGTON (July 25, 2007) - The president of the National Retiree
Legislative Network (NRLN) today called for the U.S. House of
Representatives to pass an intergenerational healthcare bill that
would be beneficial to America's children and Medicare participants.
"The House should pass the Children's Health And Medicare
Protection (CHAMP) Act," said A. J. (Jim) Norby, NRLN president. "The
bill, if passed, would not only provide healthcare for uninsured
children but would also improve aspects of Medicare for older
Americans."
Norby said the legislation would reduce the asset test in
Medicare Part D and streamline the application process, thereby
helping millions of Americans with modest savings, including many of
the NRLN's two million members, gain access to affordable healthcare.
He said the NRLN supports the provision in the bill that would give
more low-income Medicare beneficiaries extra help with prescription
drug costs.
"Unless Congress comes up with a solution such as the one
offered in this bill, physicians will face a 10-percent cut to
Medicare payments on Jan. 1, 2008. According to the American Medical
Association, more than 60 percent of doctors say they will limit the
number of new Medicare patients they will treat if the cut goes
through," Norby said. "With more Americans reaching the age for
Medicare eligibility, it would be foolish to curtail their access to
medical care."
The bill would block impending cuts in Medicare payments to
doctors, giving them a modest increase in fees in each of the next two
years while Congress tries to devise a new payment policy.
Norby noted that the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office
said the government paid private Medicare plans, on average, 12
percent more than it would have cost to care for the same people in
traditional Medicare. Moreover, it said, payments to the
fastest-growing type of plan, known as private fee-for-service plans,
are 19 percent higher than the cost of traditional Medicare.
"The House bill would gradually reduce these payments so
that Medicare would pay the same amount, regardless of whether a
beneficiary was in a private plan or in traditional Medicare," Norby
said. "In addition, the House bill would prohibit private Medicare
plans from charging higher co-payments than traditional Medicare."
Another important provision of the bill, according to Norby,
is that the Secretary of Health and Human Services would be allowed to
expand Medicare coverage of preventive services like certain
disease-detection screenings. To encourage use of these benefits,
Congress would eliminate most co-payments and other charges.
Based in Washington, D.C., the NRLN is dedicated to securing
federal legislation that will guarantee the fair and equitable
treatment of retirees in the private and public sector. The NRLN
represents a non-partisan, grass roots coalition of retiree
associations with a combined membership of some two million men and
women who are seeking to protect their pension and healthcare
benefits. For more information, visit the NRLN Web site at
http://www.nrln.org.
While there
are a number of other provisions in the bill that would strengthen
Medicare, those listed above should provide a sufficient incentive for
you to urge your U.S. Representative to support the CHAMP Act. A
sample letter is available for you to send to your Representative.
Please go to the NRLN website at
http://capwiz.com/abtr/home and look for
the Action Alert with the headline URGE YOUR U.S. REPRESENTATIVE TO
SUPPORT CHILDREN'S HEALTH AND MEDICARE PROTECTION ACT. After you click
on "Take Action" you will see a box to type in your zip code. The
Representative to receive your letter will be identified based on your
zip code.
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