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Medicare Premium Fairness Act

Floor Speech

Date: Sept. 24, 2009
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Senior Citizens Entitlements and the Safety Net Health and Health Care

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Ms. TITUS. Thank you, Chairmen RANGEL, STARK, WAXMAN, DINGELL, and PALLONE, for your leadership on this important issue.

Mr. Speaker, my State of Nevada has been particularly hard hit by the economic downturn. In addition to record unemployment and high foreclosure rates, Nevadans have watched as their retirement savings have plummeted in value. This has been especially hard on our senior population, which has been the fastest growing in the country for the last decade.

To make matters worse for our economically strapped seniors, some of whom have had to choose between buying food and buying medicine, it is now projected that Social Security recipients will not receive a cost-of-living increase in their benefits next year for the first time in 35 years. Simultaneously, Medicare part B premiums will continue to rise. So, unless Congress acts quickly and decisively, this could mean a reduction in Social Security benefits at a time when many Nevada seniors count on every dollar to get by.

As the gentleman from Texas pointed out, not all seniors will see a decrease in their Social Security checks caused by part B premium increases, thanks to a hold harmless policy. About 27 percent of enrollees, some 11 million people, however, nationally and thousands in Nevada are excluded from that hold harmless policy. As a result, they will see their Social Security checks shrink if we don't pass this bill.

The Medicare Premium Fairness Act before you today will eliminate this inequity, and it will protect all Medicare enrollees so that no senior will see his or her premium increase or will experience a Social Security check decrease.

Because this bill is fully paid for by using existing funds, including the Medicare Improvement Fund, and because it meets the PAYGO requirements, it's a responsible way to stand up and provide for our seniors during these tough economic times. So I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this crucial legislation.

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