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Dear Ralph,
When we were combing through the questions you sent in through our “Ask Al” page (it’s right here in case you want to send in a question for our next installment), we noticed a lot of questions about Medicare.
Q. (Bob C.) Any chance of changing the law so Medicare can bargain for better prescription drug prices similar to what the VA does?
This is a great question, because letting Medicare negotiate for better drug prices is a great idea.
A little background: Medicare represents a lot of people, and so if it could negotiate directly with the drug companies, it would be able to deliver the same benefits for seniors at a lower cost. For instance: As Bob says, the Department of Veterans Affairs uses its size to negotiate, and for the ten most-prescribed drugs, the VA pays about half what Medicare does.
The only reason Medicare doesn’t negotiate for better prices is — get this — it’s literally against the law for the government to negotiate to get a better deal. That’s an actual law that Washington politicians passed. It’s a huge giveaway to big drug companies that don’t need the help, and it makes zero sense — especially when getting rid of that rule could save us up to $240 billion over ten years.
That’s why I’ve fought to change that law ever since I got to the Senate, and why I’m going to keep fighting until we get it done.
Q. (Colin C.) How are you and your Senate colleagues going to protect Social Security, Medicare, and pensions for all of us seniors? These are not entitlement programs — we have all personally paid into them and they are not some piggy bank to be used to fund other aspects of the government.
I agree — and that’s why it bothers me to see politicians in Washington suggest making deep cuts to Social Security benefits or turning Medicare into a voucher program. We have to reduce the deficit without resorting to attacks on the economic and health security of our seniors.
You might have heard me talk about how my wife Franni’s family made it through serious financial struggles thanks in large part to Social Security survivor benefits. And even today, Social Security means economic security for millions of seniors and families.
Medicare is a similar promise: If you work hard and play by the rules your whole life, you won’t have to worry that an injury or illness after your retirement will mean economic ruin.
And while there are ways we can work to protect the solvency of these programs (like letting Medicare negotiate for cheaper drugs), we simply have to draw a line in the sand on anything that would threaten these underlying promises.
For instance: The “Ryan plan” for Medicare would take away the guarantee of health care and replace it with a voucher — a coupon that might. . . or might not. . . cover the cost of the care you need. It’s a terrible idea, and I’ll fight it every time it comes up.
If you have questions about Medicare and Social Security, or about anything, drop me a line through the “Ask Al” page here. I’ll answer a few more in an upcoming email.
Thanks,
Al
P.S.: Thanks to everyone who’s already sent in questions. If you’d like to send in one of your own, you can do so at this link.
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