Watch the full video above or jump directly to the following sections by clicking the links below (questions are paraphrased):
Secretary Sebelius welcomes the crowd
The President gives opening remarks
Why does it take 10 years to close the doughnut hole completely?
Will Medicare Advantage changes hurt benefits?
Is there more support for primary care?
How does reform affect living independently vs in a nursing home?
Are Medicare & Social Security going to run out of money for future generations?
What’s going to happen to COBRA subsidies?
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During the avalanche of misinformation last year from those opposed to reform of our health care system, there was no more persistent target than America’s seniors. From the most outlandish claims about “death panels,” to the most personal but equally bogus claims about Medicare benefit cuts, the airwaves were filled with disingenuous talking heads and millions of dollars in deceptive ads stoking fear and confusion.
And so with the bill signed into law, and the talking heads having largely moved on to more current lines of attack, the President took some time today to talk with seniors across the country in a tele-town hall. Much as the Vice President did back in September of 2009, the President assured them that their Medicare benefits were going to be safe and sound, and that they could keep their doctors – and myth of “death panels” seemed long-since dispelled.
But with the bill and all of its benefits beginning to come into effect, there was much new to discuss – as the President said in his opening remarks:
Case in point: Beginning this week, tens of thousands of seniors who fall into the doughnut hole, like Fran, will receive a $250 rebate check to help you cover the cost of your prescriptions. That will happen immediately — that’s starting now. (Applause.) Each month — and what’s going to happen is, each month, as more seniors hit the doughnut hole, more and more checks will hit the mail -– helping more than 4 million seniors by the end of this year. Now, beginning next year, if you fall into the coverage gap, you’ll get a 50 percent discount on the brand-name medicine that you need — 50 percent. (Applause.) And by 2020 — it’s being phased in, but by 2020 this law will close the doughnut hole completely. The doughnut hole will be gone. It will be gone. (Applause.)
Now, that’s not all. Beginning next year, preventive care -– including annual wellness visits for Medicare beneficiaries, certain screening services like mammograms -– will be free, because the best way to prevent a serious illness is to diagnose it early.
This law also gives us the power to see to it that insurance companies don’t raise your rates just to pad their profits. (Applause.) Last week, Secretary Sebelius reminded insurance companies that we’ve got the authority to review and reject unreasonable rate increases for Medicare Advantage plans, and she put them on notice that we will exercise that authority.
Finally, because seniors are more frequently targeted by scam artists, we made sure the new law gives us stronger tools to target criminals. And I want to send a notice to all who would swindle and steal from seniors and the Medicare system: We are going to find you, we will prosecute you, and we will ultimately prevent those crimes from happening ever again. (Applause.)
Members of the audience listen as President Barack Obama discusses the Affordable Care Act at a national tele-town hall meeting at the Holiday Park Multipurpose Senior Center in Wheaton, Maryland,
The President took a number of poignant questions, and took the time to answer as thoroughly as possible — read any or all of them in the full transcript. The most personal of all may have been an exchange about nursing homes and living independently:
Fonte: White House