Was talking to my elderly (Rethuglican) neighbor about health care reform

[justiceischeap]

He's not a rethug but he votes along those party lines. I was shocked to learn that he thinks that passing health care reform would take away his Medicare. I told him that isn't the case, pointed out that if the Democratic party passed something that took away Medicare, they'd never get reelected. Unfortunately, he didn't seem to believe that.

Are you finding this is a common belief among the elderly?

[izquierdista]

1. Ask him why he's a socialist

Tell him Medicare is a government run program.

[justiceischeap]

2. He knows it's government run.

His fear is that in reforming health care, DEMOCRATS will take it away. His wife is really sick, so they're very dependent upon the Medicare they receive. I wonder where he's learning this "information" that his medicare will be taken away if reform happens.

[zbdent]

4. ask him why it is that the Repugs were (and are) against the establishment of Medicare

and why they actively try to kill it? And why doesn't he get scared when they try to do so?

Give him plenty of examples ...

[Bandit]

3. Democrats are talking along those lines

Maybe not taking it away but reworking it so it won't cost so much...IOW it won't cover as much..

[babylonsister]

5. Are they? Got a link? First I've heard of this. nt

[Greyhound]

24. Back in mid-June this story came out.

IIRC, the proposal was to cut about $200B from the Medicare budget over ten years to defray costs of the Insurance Welfare Bill.

[babylonsister]

25. Is that the proposal that's been decided on? Because I am lost.

I don't know where this is at now with all the discussion swirling. I didn't know anything in the Senate or House had been finalized.

[Greyhound]

26. It made a brief appearance and I'm sure Faux is still running with it, but

I haven't heard anything else about it since the initial balloon was floated. My guess is that, if it still exists, it is buried deep in the 1,000+ pages of the health proposals or in the 7,000+ pages of the Federal Budget.

[Winterblues]

27. There is another thread that mentions something about this

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6265947
McConnel mentioned something about a half trillion dollars in Medicare cuts...

[sharp_stick]

6. We won't need Medicare

As soon as this is done we'll have those handy dandy Death Panels that Sarah Palin was talking about to get rid of old folks won't we? It'll save us a damned fortune it will. Ask him if his address is up to date with the Medicare officials so they can find him the day after it all gets approved. Gotta put those FEMA camps to use doncha know.

:sarcasm: of course

[Walk away]

7. My 82 yr old father is convinced Obama wants to take away...

his choice. He's on Medicare with a government supplemental. There is nothing anyone can say to help him understand that he is already on socialized medicine.

The republican party has been using fear and ignorance to brain wash this country for generations. Facts are irrelevant .

[Kalyke]

15. He's not on socialized medicine.

He's on national health insurance.

The only example of socialized medicine we have in this country is the VA.

[Still Sensible]

8. An ad running on the news networks

trumpets that Obama is going to pay for his reform by taking $500 billion from Medicare benefits. Of course no accurate context, just claiming that seniors will get worse care and would "lose" a lot. Hey, it's on teevee, so it must be true.

[justiceischeap]

10. I'm guessing that's where he's getting his info from then

I've stopped watching TV of late, so I don't see what the HC companies, lobbying groups are doing as far as TV.

[sinkingfeeling]

11. Obama wants to cut the costs of Medicare by $500 billion, not the benefits. It's the Medicare

providers (with a hefty percentage committing fraud), that will be 'hit'.

[Still Sensible]

20. Absolutely correct. Just reporting how the

interests on the other side are portraying it in what appears to be a significant ad buy.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

23. The ads I have seen don't specify they just say cut Medicare by $500 billion.

[Shagbark Hickory]

9. Tell him medicare sucks and he's bankrupting the children by using it.

Suggest a hassle free single-payer system.

[vincna]

21. After he's paid into it his entire life? Good luck! - nt

[Historic NY]

12. Remind him it was the Democrats that passed both as part of LBJ's Great Society..

44 yrs ago on July 30th. It passed with large Democrat Majority votes H:307-116 & S:70-24.

[kentuck]

13. If we don't get this reform, we may have to reform Medicare...

Older people above a certain income may be requested to drop their government-run Medicare and to acquire health coverage from a private insurer.

[Jennicut]

14. Arguing with the elderly is kind of pointless. My Grandma can barely remember who I am half the time

Seriously, they are easily confused and manipulated because they are older.

[justiceischeap]

17. I don't argue with him, it really was a discussion. He's a great neighbor

who happens to vote wrong. :)

I was just shocked that he thought he'd lose his medicare. Which makes me wonder if my parents think the same thing (maybe I should call and ask).

[Jennicut]

22. I know, I wish they would not be so easily fed lies too. I think the Rethugs know this

and prey on their fears.

[Barack_America]

16. They don't want to believe it...

They've been looking for any evidence that the scary black man in the White House is coming for them and now they think they've got something.

There's no way to convince them otherwise.

[Bluenorthwest]

18. What I find is common is folks who think of 'the elderly' as a

monolithic block of people who think the same way. Not only is it insulting, but it is in fact the core problem our Party is facing right now. And frankly, I have been trying hard to get the elected Democrats to communicate with Medicare beneficiaries clearly and specifically. Just for your information, fully one third of Medicare beneficiaries are disabled people, who are not 'elderly'. Some of them are 18 years old.
It is part of the duty of those leading the reform movement to explain to those most vulnerable exactly what is going to happen. It is not the duty of the beneficiaries to trust those elected officials, nor to assume a thing. It is the duty of those with a plan to promote to promote that plan to those whose lives are touched by that plan. And they are doing a piss poor job of it.
What I am finding is a common thread among many groups of people is that they do not know what to believe, because no one is speaking about facts and policy in specific terms. Our sides talking heads on TV are terrible at their jobs, they are incapable of communicating. What everyone wants to know is 'how much will it cost me' and 'what do I gain or lose' and face it, no one is telling anyone a thing except that it will be mandatory to purchase a for profit insurance policy. We have to buy it, but they refuse to say how much it will cost.
Only fools support the purchase of a pig in a poke.

[vincna]

19. The twelve slice pie

There are many people who are satisfied with the health care they have now. Using a pizza as an analogy, the standard way to cut the pie is into 8 slices. I think a lot of folks, particularly the elderly, are happy with the slice they're getting now and are worried that health care reform will cut that pie into 12 or 14 slices. If that happens, they will wind up with a smaller slice which equals crappy health care. Anyone who is satisfied with what they have now is going to be a tough sell. Unfortunately, I believe there are a lot of people like that (maybe not on DU) and they vote too.

The real question is how do you convince the satisfied people they should opt into a reformed system.