ADVISORY
FROM THE COMMITTEE ON WAYS AND MEANS

Thomas Announces Hearing on Medicare Solvency

Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Committee will hold a hearing on Medicare solvency. The hearing will take place on Tuesday, March 20, 2001, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, directly following the joint Committee on Ways and Means and Senate Committee on Finance hearing on solvency.

In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. The sole witness at this hearing will be Rick Foster, Chief Actuary, Office of the Actuary, Health Care Financing Administration. However, any individual or organization not scheduled for an oral appearance may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.

BACKGROUND:

Although growth in Medicare expenditures has been flat the last several years, costs are expected to rise substantially in the near- and long-term. For example, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that Medicare expenditures will rise by 10.5 percent in fiscal year 2001 and more than double over the next 10 years, from $219 billion in 2000 to $497 billion in 2011. At that time, 77 million baby boomers begin to retire and the ratio of workers per beneficiary will decline from about 4:1 today to 2:1 in 2030. The Medicare Trustees will release their updated 30-year projections of Medicare expenditures and revenues, on Monday, March 19, 2001.

In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated: "Members of Congress must have a thorough understanding of the fiscal challenges that confront the Medicare program before we embark on any policies to modernize the program. The Chief Actuary will provide insight and analysis regarding the factors driving the Trustees' projections."

FOCUS OF THE HEARING:

The House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance will hold a joint hearing on the Medicare and Social Security Trustees' report earlier in the day. The purpose of this hearing is to explore in more depth the fiscal challenges confronting the Medicare program and current measures of Medicare solvency.

DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:

Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit six (6) single-spaced copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Tuesday, April 3, 2001, to Allison Giles, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Committee office, room 1102 Longworth House Office Building, by close of business the day before the hearing.

FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:

Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be submitted on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in WordPerfect or MS Word format, typed in single space and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.

2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.

3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.

4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, company, address, telephone and fax numbers where the witness or the designated representative may be reached. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.

The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press, and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.

Note: All Committee advisories and news releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://waysandmeans.house.gov.

The Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event (four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to special accommodation needs in general (including availability of Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the Committee as noted above.