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Will Medical Care for the Elderly and Poor Be a Broken Promise?
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Will Medical Care for the Elderly and Poor Be a Broken Promise?

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The federal government promises healthcare for the elderly and the poor, but Medicare and Medicaid are steaming toward a "fiscal train wreck." The law requires the next president to resolve a problem that's been building for years. How serious is it? What are the candidates proposing to do? Also, in Iraq, Maliki gives the Shiite militias a three-day ultimatum.

Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

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Main Topic

What's Left of the Promise of Healthcare for the Elderly and Poor? ()

A California doctor gets $24 to spend a half hour with a Medicaid patient, less than it costs to keep the lights on in his office. His plumber gets ten times as much to fix a plugged drain in 45 minutes. Medicaid and Medicare are in trouble, and everybody's known it for years. Medicare, which poses the biggest and most immediate challenge, already accounts for 23% of all federal spending, and medical costs are expected to double in the next 10 years. Starting this year, the hospital insurance trust fund will pay out more in benefits than it gets in revenues. But the principal fix for rising medical costs has been cutting fees for doctors and other providers. More and more doctors are refusing those patients, and the next president will be required by law to do something about it. Are the candidates coming up with solutions? 

Guests:
  • Marilyn Moon: former independent board member, Medicare and Social Security
  • Ted Mazer: Trustee, California Medical Association
  • John C. Goodman: President, National Center for Policy Analysis
  • David Cutler: Professor of Economics, Harvard University
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