This guy is such a genius.
I didn't see Joan McCarter's diary, Republican senators want to sell seniors on Medicare privatization until today, so I didn't get a chance to comment while it was still on the front page.
I just want to add the ironic fact that for those federal employees 65 and older who decide not to enroll in Medicare, FEHB pays their claims at the Medicare approved rate, and not a penny more. This is something I learned while trying to decide whether to enroll in Medicare.
I did enroll, by the way, because if you do, Medicare becomes the primary payor, and FEHB will pay your deductibles and copays, since it's less expensive for FEHB to pay the deductibles and copays than to pay the primary claim. It might not be cost effective for everyone to pay both Medicare and FEHB premiums, but with my recent health history, I figure I will probably save more in copays and deductibles than I will pay in extra premiums. I have to keep FEHB because I have dependents younger than 65.
So, here's what happens with Paul's plan. Seniors who would have had Medicare benefits wind up receiving essentially the same benefits with FEHB, except they cost more. And it's a "gift" that keeps on giving.
FEHB, like any other employer-sponsored plan, relies upon a broad and diverse base in order to keep premiums from rising faster than they already do. If you suddenly inject every senior in the country, you destroy that base and premiums rise drastically.
So Medicare is gone, replaced by a senior heavy PRIVATE insurance plan with all the attendant devilish details. Rates will literally skyrocket, and both seniors and federal employees will be left holding the bag - of bills that is. The insurance companies will be holding the cash.
I'm sure the ability to enact such a policy quickly is very appealing to Paul.
He could even call his plan "JIFA" (Junk Insurance For All).
Seniors had better learn quickly that any time a Republican says he wants to do something for you, the "for you" should be read as "to you."