Thursday letters: Leave Medicare the way it is

The budget resolution, recently passed by the House of Representatives, substitutes premium-support payments to help buy private insurance for Medicare coverage.

Replacing Medicare with private insurance would be devastating for seniors. Compare Medicare and private insurance:

▪ Medicare will not be canceled if you get sick. Private insurance companies have a history of canceling policies when people get sick.

▪ Medicare coverage is comprehensive, covering most of our health problems. Private insurance companies have a history of limiting coverage. The limitations are submerged in difficult-to-understand documents, frequently 50 or more pages in length.

▪ Medicare costs seniors about half what private insurance costs through the Affordable Care Act. (A 60-year-old without a subsidy will pay an annual premium of $7,537 for private insurance.)

Medicare allows seniors, not private insurance companies, to control their health-care decisions.

Since most of us will be seniors some day, this House resolution is very bad for all of us. Please tell Congress to stop trying to replace Medicare.

Clemson

This story was originally published April 8, 2015 at 7:30 PM with the headline "Thursday letters: Leave Medicare the way it is."