Marcia Fudge defends health care bill, says it is good for seniors

By Lindsay Betz, Sun News

April 08, 2010, 10:05AM

Congresswoman Marcia Fudge spoke to over two dozen seniors about healthcare reform at the South Euclid Community Center last week. SOUTH EUCLID -- There is still some confusion about what the recent passage of the health care bill means for most Americans.

U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, visited the Community Center April 1 to meet with seniors and answer questions about the bill.

“I think, all in all, for seniors this is a very, very good bill,” Fudge said to a room of about 25 senior citizens. “Is it perfect? No, it’s not. Is it a good start? Yes it is.”

Fudge said there have been a lot of rumors surrounding the bill and hoped to help clear things up.

She said not only is the bill paid for, but it will also reduce the federal deficit. She explained the Congressional Budget Office has estimated it will save $1.2 trillion over the next 20 years and $138 billion in the short-term.

Although it will take four years to fully phase in all of the changes laid out in the bill, some provisions will take effect immediately.

Fudge said seniors who are in the Medicare Part D coverage gap will receive a $250 rebate this year to help pay for prescriptions.

Over the next four years, brand-name prescription drug costs for seniors will be reduced by 50 percent. There will also be no co-pays for preventative care visits, she said.

She also confirmed the bill will in fact cut money from Medicare Advantage programs. That money will now be spent on Medicare.

Fudge brought up the misconception the passage of the bill means a “government takeover” of the healthcare system.

“We’re not taking over healthcare,” she said. “All those outside Medicare and Medicaid who purchase insurance are going to be purchasing it from insurance companies, not the federal government.”

According to Fudge, the bill will also ensure children with pre-existing conditions can not be denied coverage, people who have chronic illnesses can not be dropped by their insurance companies and citizens will not spend more than 11 percent of their income on health insurance.

The bill also limits insurance company profits by mandating 85 percent of every dollar collected is spent on actual care, she said.

One woman asked if the goal of the bill is to provide health insurance for the poor. Fudge said the bill aims to help the middle class obtain affordable coverage.

“The people that it’s going to help the most are the people who are the working poor,” Fudge said.

“Poor people already have insurance, it is Medicaid. The people we’re really trying to help are the middle class . . . because those are the people who are hurting the most.”

People asked questions about why it took so long to pass the bill, if the passage means a future doctor shortage and if the bill means the government will buy insurance for those who can not afford it.

Fudge said the bill is not perfect, but it is a good start.

She added when Medicare was signed into law in 1965, critics were offering many of the same arguments they are offering against the latest healthcare reform efforts.

“I think that what we’ve done is good and I know that history will prove us right, just like history proved them right 40 or 50 years ago (when Medicare became law)” she said.

President Barack Obama signed the healthcare bill into law March 23.

In the 11th District of Ohio, the bill will improve coverage for 298,000 residents with health insurance. It will also give tax credits and other assistance to up to 163,000 families and 14,000 small businesses to help them afford coverage, according to a document from the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Fudge also fielded questions about college loans, social security and funding for senior services.

Contact Betz at (216) 986-5867.