Since Medicare Part D’s creation in 2003, National Taxpayers Union has expressed concerns about its impact on the federal budget. The program, which instituted a prescription drug benefit for Medicare, cost $55 billion in 2012 – a hefty price tag, yet much less than original projections that suggested it would saddle taxpayers with a $123 billion burden.
It’s encouraging (and extremely rare) to see a federal program defy the trend and actually come in well below the cost forecasts. Unfortunately, recent actions by the Obama Administration could take Part D in the wrong direction. In approximately 700 pages of text, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed wholesale changes that could reduce options within the program, increase premiums, cancel or significantly alter millions of existing plans, and force taxpayers to shell out more. In fact, a study by the Milliman actuarial firm concluded that Part D would cost an additional $1.6 billion per year if the rules are adopted.
Thankfully, a bipartisan group of 20 Senators led by Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Orrin Hatch (R-UT) recently expressed very strong objections to the proposed rule in a letter to CMS Director Marilyn Tavenner. Similarly, a letter to Director Tavenner from House Ways & Means Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI), House Energy & Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), and Senator Hatch asks her to “reject these harmful changes to the Part D program and withdraw this proposed regulation.”
The CMS proposal is yet another example of the Obama Administration’s over-utilization of the rulemaking process. As strong bipartisan opposition to the rule continues to grow, NTU hopes CMS will be mindful of taxpayers as well as seniors, and abandon it altogether.