Cliff Stearns: “As we press ahead with the most important business before this Congress, strengthening Medicare, the American people…”

“As we press ahead with the most important business before this Congress, strengthening Medicare, the American people need to understand just how much waste can be cut out of this program for senior citizens. Last Thursday I was home in my district for a series of town meetings with seniors to discuss the Medicare plan. At one of these meetings I had a constituent, Mrs. Hill of Ocala, stand to her feet to offer one example of the waste in the system. This is it, right here in my hand. It seems Medicare part B reimbursed beneficiaries no matter how small the cost, in this case 1 cent. What is Mrs. Hill going to do with the check for 1 cent? The time she spent opening the envelope was worth 1 cent. The postage alone to send this check is worth 32 cents, or 32 times its value. I bet the paper and ink used to print this check cost more than 1 cent. Mr. Speaker, conservative estimates put the amount of waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicare at $20 billion. With stories like Mrs. Hill's it is little surprise. Our seniors demand and deserve that we root out waste, fraud, and abuse for Medicare. They are right, and we should.”