FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-3943
September 9, 1999
No. HL-9
Congressman Bill Thomas (R-CA), Chairman, Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold a hearing on strengthening the Medicare program for future generations. The hearing will take place on Thursday, September 16, 1999, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony at this hearing will be from invited witnesses only. Witnesses will include experts in the structure, financing and history of the Medicare program. 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:
In the years ahead, the Medicare program will face serious challenges brought on by rapid changes in the aging of the population and increasing medical costs. Today, Medicare comprises 11 percent of Federal outlays, but by 2030, it is projected to consume between 28 and 38 percent of Federal spending, requiring more than doubling the payroll tax to cover increased expenditures. Even sooner, without structural changes in the program, Medicare will be bankrupt by 2015.
Additionally, Medicare has not kept pace with the transformation of the health care delivery system. While the program represented first-class coverage in 1965, private insurance plans have surpassed Medicare in offering their enrollees better benefits, including prescription drug coverage, and greater choice of providers at reduced cost. The National Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare considered these facts in indicating its support for a plan to strengthen and improve the Medicare program in time for the retirement of the 77 million "Baby Boomers" beginning in 2010.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Thomas stated: "The Medicare Commission's proposal received bipartisan support from 60 percent of its members. I believe that the Commission's approach, based on expanded choice for all beneficiaries in all areas, improved benefits, and increased efficiencies, offers the best plan for sustaining the Medicare program for future generations. As Congress deliberates the best methods to strengthen Medicare and expand benefits to include prescription drugs for needy seniors, we must act in a comprehensive way that will not bankrupt Medicare and deny seniors their current benefits. Medicare's current statutory and regulatory structure simply cannot keep pace with innovations in the health care delivery system."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The hearing will focus on the need to reform the administration, structure, and financing of the Medicare program to maintain its long term solvency, ensure enrollees' access to benefits, and improve choice of health plans.
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 5.1 format, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, September 30, 1999, to A.L. Singleton, 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 Subcommittee on Health office, room 1136 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 5.1 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.
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.