Fix Health Care Policy

Not all surprises are good. When it comes to Obamacare, the original projections are turning into unfortunately different realities. For the next three days, Heritage is going to highlight one of the various changes in Obamacare projections (e.g., cost, enrollment, etc.) from when the law first passed until now.

Obamacare created the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), which consists of 15 unelected bureaucrats who are tasked with finding savings within Medicare to meet a new, fixed target for spending growth in the program. The board’s recommendations will be implemented unless Congress enacts an alternative proposal that amounts to the same level of savings.

In 2010, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that IPAB would result in Medicare savings of $15.5 billion from 2010–2019.

In 2012, the CBO projected that the IPAB would result in zero savings for the years 2015–2019.  According to the CBO, “…the IPAB mechanism will not affect Medicare spending during the 2011-2022 period.” Later, in a letter regarding the repeal of Obamacare, CBO estimated that the IPAB could save $3.1 billion over the 2013–2022 period, but cautioned “That estimate is extremely uncertain because it is not clear whether the mechanism for spending reductions under the IPAB authority will be triggered under current law over the next 10 years.”

Surprise: The IPAB is yet another Obamacare plan that not only sounds like a bad idea, it is a bad idea. The IPAB is like a fruit cake—and it’s time to regift.

12 Days of Obamacare Surprises:

9. Increased employer penalties…

8. More cuts to Medicare…

7. Loss of employer-sponsored insurance…

6. A 50/50 split on enrollment estimates…

5. More uninsured Americans…

4. Increased exchange subsidies…

3. Big tax increases…

2. The small business tax credit…

1. And the individual mandate.

Tags: cost control, Independent Payment Advisory Board, IPAB, Medicare, Obamacare surprise

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Donald Berwick this morning is expected to testify before Congress in his first appearance since a controversial recess appointment in June. He will talk before the Senate Finance Committee.

President Barack Obama’s controversial decision to sidestep protocol and appoint Berwick has been magnified by media coverage of Berwick’s publications and speeches that supported highly centralized health-care systems. While a respected health policy analyst, Berwick has what he calls “romantic” views on the United Kingdom’s National Health Service, which rations care based on the cost-effectiveness of treatments. Likening Britain’s system to a “global treasure” has many senators concerned that Berwick will take the same viewpoint while implementing the new health law. (more…)

Tags: CMS Administrator Dr. Donald Berwick, Independent Payment Advisory Board, Medicaid, Medicare, National Health Service, ObamaCare