Medicare Bill Passes Despite Veto Threat

[unapatriciated]

by Julie Rovner and Andrea Seabrook

Congress this week passed — by a veto-proof margin — legislation to cancel a 10.6 percent pay cut to doctors who care for Medicare patients. But President Bush says he'll veto it anyway, because the bill also reduces funding to private insurance plans that participate in Medicare.

Kennedy Returns To Senate For Medicare Vote

Morning Edition, July 10, 2008 · Senators were surprised to see Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) return to the Senate floor for a pivotal Medicare vote Wednesday afternoon. They were even more surprised minutes later, when a bill that just days earlier seemed mired in partisan limbo passed by a veto-proof 69-30 margin.

Kennedy's unexpected appearance was just the latest twist in the saga of a Medicare bill that has defied predictions at every turn.

Almost until the vote was over, it seemed that Kennedy's was the vote that would send President Bush the bill to cancel a 10.6 percent pay cut to doctors that officially took effect July 1. Then Republicans started to change their votes — "lots of Republicans who said they weren't going to change their mind at the last minute. I mean, this was a stampede at the end," said health policy analyst Robert Laszewski.

Laszewski, who consults for health insurance companies, says passage of the bill is significant not just because it cancels the cut for doctors, but because of how the bill is paid for — by trimming payments to private insurance plans that serve Medicare patients.

"Democrats used the impending 10.6 percent cut to accomplish something I think that they would consider more important — and that is to begin to stem the tide against the expansion of private Medicare," he said.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92493071

[ileus]

1. dumbass better not veto it...

[unapatriciated]

2. His fellow repugs were falling all over themselves to change their vote.

yet dumb ass thinks he is still king, He hasn't figured out yet that there are two things you don't mess with...Social Security and Medicare.

The over 60 crowd still remember how AARP sold them down the river.
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-6244361.html

Mess with their survival and they turn out to vote in blocks and the repugs understand this and don't want to lose their seats.

If he Veto's he may wake up to find these guys on the White House lawn.

[cayuga]

3. Article doesn't mention the impact on the military.

The military health program TRICARE is tied to this legislation also. If bush vetos this, premiums will increase for those under the TRICARE program starting in January. Once again, the bush mafia are disemboweling the military and ensuring retention goes down.

[unapatriciated]

5. Kennedy recieved a standing ovation when he returned to vote on this.

The House strongly passed this bill in bipartisan, veto-proof fashion by nearly 300 votes, and the Senate has now passed it by a veto-proof margin as well. It is now up to the President to sign it into law. I call on him to join Congress in making sure Medicare works better for every American senior and TRICARE works better for our troops.

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/07/09/kennedy-medicare/


I had not realized Tricare was tired to this, so yet another reasons for the repugs to override dumbass's promised veto.
Another example of how this idiot supports the troops.


Mcain showed his support...he missed the vote.

[williesgirl]

4. What will we do without the leadership of Sen Kennedy? Thank you Sir for this. rec'd