Slide 1 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Entitlement spending is the main cause of long-term runaway federal deficits. Medicare is the fastest- growing program due to retiring baby boomers and rising health care costs.

Slide 10 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Projected Medicare savings from Obamacare don't improve the program. Instead, they pay for other new programs created under the law that aren't even for seniors. By slashing reimbursement rates instead of introducing real reform, the health law jeopardizes seniors'

Slide 9 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Many believe that seniors pay for their own Medicare benefits, but in fact, current workers finance current enrollee benefits. In addition, most Medicare beneficiaries end up receiving more than what they paid in to the system.

Slide 3 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Workers' contributions to Medicare aren't set aside for their own retirement— they pay for current beneficiaries. A main cause of Medicare's growing insolvency is that the ratio of workers to beneficiaries is falling.

Slide 8 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Approximately 88 percent of seniors' Medicare benefits are funded by taxpayers. Medicare Part A is mandatory coverage funded by the payroll tax. But Medicare Parts B and D, which cover outpatient services and prescription drugs, respectively, are voluntary and

Slide 2 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform The Medicare shortfall is the difference between the money the program brings in and the money it spends on health care benefits. Even assuming that unrealistic cost-containment policies in current law are sustained, by 2040, Medicare's shortfall will account

Slide 12 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Obamacare makes deep cuts to provider payments to offset the cost of new programs that aren't for seniors. If these deep cuts go into effect, many providers will operate in the red, making it very difficult for seniors to

Slide 6 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Medicare is consuming more of household income than ever before, a trend that will continue. Absent reform, the situation will soon require either economy-crushing new taxes or painful benefit cuts in the program.

Slide 5 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform The Medicare trustees are required to base their projections on current law as it is written. These projections rely on unrealistic assumptions, such as Congress allowing staggering provider payment cuts that will harm seniors' access to care. The alternative

Slide 4 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform The average life expectancy in the United States has increased since Medicare was created, but the program's eligibility age has remained constant at age 65. As a result, seniors collect benefits for almost three times as long compared to

Slide 11 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform Ratcheting down Medicare payments to contain the program's cost growth will limit seniors' access to care. Medicaid, the government health program for the poor, already sets provider payment rates far below private insurance, creating similar barriers to care for

Slide 7 | Medicare at Risk: Visualizing the Need for Reform If Medicare continues to run yearly deficits in Part A alone and the trust fund runs dry, automatic benefit cuts will go into effect unless Congress acts. Addressing the imbalance in Medicare Part A alone by raising the payroll

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Administration Eisenhower

FY 2011 earnings: $18.98 billion Net worth: $189.7 billion Total assets: $2.3 trillion Losses since April: $2 billion