A couple of posts ago was about the so-called Republican plan to change Social Security. It is championed by Congressman Ryan.  As I mentioned in that previous post this new social security is supposed to empower seniors to get the best plan available but they limit the choices to private insurance companies. I personally have had enough dealings with those for-profit insurance guys to know that profit, not the customers, is their far and away number one priority for them.

If as Congressman Ryan suggests that his new plan is an improvement that “empowers” us then why don’t they “empower” the recipients of Medicare to choose his plan or the current one?  I would not be opposed to having Mr. Ryan’s plan to be one of the options that I can choose if I buy into his rhetoric. But give me the option of going to the same plan that my father and grand-father used.  The Republicans say they are all for competition and the free market place. If that is really the case then put the “empowerment” plan alongside the current one and let the competition begin.

Just yesterday Congressman Ryan said that the Democrats are playing the fear factor with “Mediscare” and that actually his proposal would be just like today’s Medicare Advantage option in Social Security. But, that doesn’t make any sense to me? It is well know that Medicare presently has to pay a 15% premium for all those on the Advantage plans. That is one of the reasons the Advantage plan is eliminated by the Democratic proposals. They are just too expensive.  If his plan is the same then he must be proposing to increase Medicare costs not decrease them.

Most people who are at least minimally knowledgeable in this area know that Mr. Ryan’s proposal is a voucher system with the amount of the voucher covering much less of the expenses than the current system. After all it would have to cover the medical procedures as well as the increased paperwork costs AND the profits needed by the private insurers. But then again I’m sure the Republicans would enable the private insurance companies to weed out all those who are currently “unhealthy” via a pre-existing condition statement so maybe that is where they would make up for their 25% or so added costs.

Congressman Ryan and his fellow Republicans are not about to give seniors a choice of staying with the current system or moving to his experimental voucher system. They know if they did that  the majority of seniors would stay with the current system.

But what do I know….