Zimmer: Medicare change must come at the ballot box

With every other ad on TV being political, we all need to be doing our homework prior to the election.

The Wall Street Journal has a good record for giving out correct information. They reported back in April 2023 that the Biden/Harris Administration "had restricted plan marketing" for Medicare Advantage and cut payments to insurers on average by 1.1 percent. This year, Biden's Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced an additional 0.16 cut to Medicare Advantage payments.

While these Medicare percentages may seem small, it all adds up to death by a thousand cuts for seniors with Medicare Advantage plans.

According to the Berkeley Research Group, plan costs will spike by 4% to 6% in 2025, in addition to the higher copays and premiums already seen this year as a result of last year's payment cuts.

These cuts to Medicare Advantage will force private insurers to reduce benefits, purge plans and withdraw from some markets, leaving seniors with less choice and higher costs.

Ironically, one of the Biden/Harris primary attack lines against Trump this campaign season has been to accuse him of wanting to cut Medicare and Social Security.

Trump, meanwhile, has explicitly promised to "never do anything that will jeopardize or hurt Social Security or Medicare."

Instead, the 45th president has made it clear that spending cuts will come from elsewhere in the government. If you are, hoping to keep Medicare Advantage affordable and accessible, change will now have to come at the ballot box.

Editor’s note: Do you have an opinion on this issue? We’d like to hear from you. Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at AzOpinions@iniusa.org.