It's catching on: Even more newspapers are expressing doubts
about Washington's attempt to add prescription drugs to Medicare as
an entitlement.
"Overall, the main
problem with these proposals is that they try to tack on drug
coverage to an already overburdened and creaky Medicare vessel,"
The Mobile (Ala.) Register writes in an Aug. 9
editorial.
The Pittsburgh
Post-Gazette reaches a
similar conclusion in an Aug. 5 editorial. "Extending the logic of
Medicare insurance to prescription drugs makes sense," the paper
writes. "The catch is that, whether or not seniors have a
government-approved card to present to the pharmacist, covering all
seniors without regard to income is a recipe for fiscal
disaster."
USA Today again weighs in on the Medicare issue
with this July 27 view: "The last thing seniors need is for
Congress to take the country down a familiar legislative path that
leads to a new benefit seniors don't want and taxpayers can't
afford." Its June 11 editorial says: "By adding a costly new
benefit without updating the rest of the program, Congress is
squandering the opportunity to address other needed
changes."
The growing
editorial chorus says the Medicare drug proposal now being
worked on by a Capitol Hill committee is flawed and will cost
taxpayers billions. The newspapers are liberal, moderate and
conservative. But they all agree on this: The Medicare drug
proposals must go.
For more
information or to receive an e-mail version of "Medicare Maladies,"
contact medicaremaladies@heritage.org or call Heritage Media
Services at (202) 675-1761.
("Medicare Maladies" is a regular feature, launched 7/14/03, from
The Heritage Foundation. Sad to say, there's another malady coming
your way tomorrow. Daily "maladies" are also available on
heritage.org.)