Sherrod Brown: “this summer AARP devised a litmus test for Medicare legislation. Specifically, AARP said Congress must be careful not to…”

“this summer AARP devised a litmus test for Medicare legislation. Specifically, AARP said Congress must be careful not to pass any legislation that jeopardizes employer-sponsored retiree benefits, or that leaves such large gaps in the drug coverage that seniors still will not be able to afford needed medicines, or that includes a premium support privatization provision which will invariably give HMOs control over Medicare, or undercuts popular support for the Medicare program by requiring higher-income beneficiaries to pay more for the same coverage. In other words, we should not pass any legislation that introduces means testing into Medicare. The Medicare conference committee agreement that was outlined this weekend still jeopardizes employer-sponsored retiree coverage for 12 million seniors. In other words, as many as a third of the seniors who now have prescription drug coverage will lose it under this bill because employers will say why should we do it, we will put you in that government program. It still leaves such huge gaps in coverage the average senior will run out of drug benefits by August each year. Understand that the average senior will run out of drug benefits two-thirds of the way through the year, but, get this, will still be required to pay the premiums through December. That is a great deal.…”