Where does this talk about Dems supporting medicare cuts????

[jasmeel]

WTF? I don't see a reference to home health care cuts being supported by Dems in this article...Is this even true? I was trying to see what the angle was for the dems to be for home health care cuts but it's never discussed in the article.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/06/senate-votes-to-cut-medic_n_381628.html

Senate Dems Reject GOP Move To Block Medicare Home Health Care Cuts

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is trying to rally Senate Democrats as they work through the weekend in hopes of settling differences on his broad health care overhaul.

He planned to appear at a Senate Democratic caucus meeting Sunday afternoon in response to appeals from a number of lawmakers eager for him to step in and help Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., finish the job.

"The president is going to come in and urge us to bring this ball across the line, to finish this, as he should. This is an historic opportunity," said Illinois Sen. Richard Durbin, the No. 2 Senate Democrat.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, viewed Obama's closed-door visit with Democrats differently.

[DJ13]

1. Sounds like a cut to me

Dems defeat GOP on restoring $40B in Medicare cuts

(AP) – 21 hours ago

WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats have defeated a GOP attempt to eliminate $40 billion in cuts to home health care services in the health overhaul bill.

The 53-41 vote Saturday came during a rare weekend session to debate President Barack Obama's health legislation.

The vote was the latest Republican attempt to showcase the $460 billion in cuts to projected Medicare spending that Democrats want to make. Democrats plan to use that money to extend coverage to 30 million uninsured Americans over the next decade.

Democrats say their cuts would make Medicare stronger by eliminating overpayments and waste, and extending the program's long-term solvency.

Republicans say Democrats are using Medicare as a piggy bank to create a vast new entitlement program.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hjFe83y7CL98QraJ_lcqFtNoxJQgD9CDC5OO0

[stray cat]

2. NYtimes explains it - see below

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/health/policy/06health.html

[frazzled]

3. Better explanation here ... (cuts in overpayments to agencies but NOT in benefits to patients)

Proposed cuts defended

Democrats said those cuts, and others to Medicare private insurance plans and providers, would reduce overpayments, inefficiency and waste in the popular program, thereby strengthening it. They noted repeatedly that AARP supports the overall cuts, and also produced a letter from the National Association for Home Care and Hospice in support.

The Dec. 4 letter said the group has "agreed to do its part by reducing costs and payments in a manner that makes the Medicare home care program more efficient and less susceptible to abuse."

But Democrats didn't want to let the Republican amendment go unanswered, so Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., offered an amendment stating that the bill would not reduce guaranteed home health benefits. It passed 96-0.

"They're busy talking about the cuts when this actually improves what Medicare beneficiaries are going to get," said Kerry, referring to new preventive services and other items in the bill.

MEDPAC, an organization established by Congress to advise lawmakers on Medicare, has projected that home health care agencies would be overpaid by Medicare in 2009 by margins of 12.2 percent overall. There are some 9,700 companies providing home health care under Medicare.

The overhaul legislation would provide coverage to more than 30 million more people over the next decade with a new requirement for nearly everyone to purchase insurance. There would be new marketplaces, lower-income people would get subsidies, the federal-state Medicaid program for the poor would grow, and there would be a ban on unpopular insurance company practices such as pulling coverage when someone gets sick.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34288634/ns/politics-health_care_reform/

[Bitwit1234]

4. the real article

says that the republicans wanted to cut 40 billion from medicare and that the democrats voted to block it. I don't know about this article, all I know is the democrats stopped republicans from cutting medicare.

[laughingliberal]

5. Looks as if the Huff Po article posted under the wrong headline. That said

the posting of the information about the cuts is disconcerting. It has baffled me for years why home health is constantly targeted and, largely, by the Democrats who, as I see it, should support it. When Clinton went after 'waste, fraud, and abuse,' in Medicare it was, largely, the home health agencies taking it in the shorts. There have been cuts to and changes in payment styles to home health ever since. This industry has been all but destroyed. I remember home health agencies in San Antonio closing at the rate of several per day when new payment rates came out in 1998. This is an industry that saves Medicare a lot of money by preventing hospitalization and readmissions. I remember, also in 1998, when new guidelines came out stating a patient could only be referred to home health if they had spent 3 midnights in the hospital. So, instead of getting the agency in there to intervene before hospitalization became necessary we would be paying for everyone who might need these services to stay 3 days in the hospital. Who, I have to wonder, does this benefit? Over the years I have worked for some home health agencies. I asked our administrators why we were so heavily targeted for cuts and investigations. The answer was that we did not have the money and power to lobby for our interests in Congress. Hospital lobbies, on the other hand, had lots of money to lobby for keeping their interests protected. Funny, the largest case of Medicare fraud in history was perpetuated by Bill Frist's family's company, HCA for fraud committed while Bill's father was CEO of HCA. But this punitive attitude towards home health (which could be part of the solution for lowering our costs) persists. It discourages me Democrats still follow the lead established by President Clinton on this. Nothing in the bill I can see about cutting payments to hospitals who are far more profitable than home health.

[jasmeel]

6. Thanks- now this makes more sense. The article definitely

seemed under the wrong headline but I still wasn't sure what the issue was about.