So, as the story goes, "senior Republicans" are saying that the Ryan Budget plan - already passed by the House Republicans, marching in goosestep - is not going to work out. Of course, they blame Democrats for being unwilling to compromise. (Eric Cantor apparently got his widdle fee-fees hurt, too.) But that is not the real story here. The real story, as most Kossacks know, is that Republicans are unable to reach consensus among themselves and unwilling to risk incurring the wrath of seniors and AARP crowd (i.e., folks who are now over age 50) when it comes to cutting Medicare.
But what didn't get reported as actively in the discussions on Medicare negotiations was the testimony delivered by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, who basically pulled a Grayson and said that with the House Republican plan, Medicare patients would "die sooner" and be forced to rely on charity care.
If you run out of the government voucher and then you run out of your own money, you’re left to scrape together charity care, go without care, die sooner. There really aren’t a lot of options.
I'm still looking for video of the testimony and Q&A with Sec. Sebelius, but for now, I've posted text of her prepared statement (PDF) after the jump.
Read More