THE PRESIDENT: Well, thanks for that warm welcome, and welcome to
the people's house, the White House. I am so glad you're here to
discuss an incredibly important subject, and that is how we can work
together to strengthen Medicare.
The most eloquent spokespersons for Medicare are our senior
citizens. And I share the determination of people in this room to make
sure that Medicare is -- not only works for this generation, the
generation now on Medicare, but works for generations to come. Our
nation has a moral commitment to fulfill Medicare's promise of health
care security for American seniors and for people with disabilities.
Yet we need to do more to meet the commitment, and that's what we're
here to talk about today.
Two problems demand immediate action: Medicare must provide
prescription drug coverage. (Applause.) And all seniors should be
able to choose an affordable Medicare coverage option that best suits
their needs. (Applause.) We're going to keep our commitment to senior
Americans. And we'll work together to make Medicare work better.
(Applause.)
I want to thank Tom Scully from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services for being here -- that used to be called HCFA. (Laughter.)
He joins me in a strong commitment for that which I'm about to talk
about. You need to know my administration is committed to trusting
seniors with more options. We're committed to the programs and the
principles about which I'm going to speak.
I want to thank my fellow Americans who have joined us on the
stage. I want to thank the Salazars; they're from Texas. (Laughter
and applause.) I want to thank Mary Gruenewald for being here, as
well. I want to thank Joe Hotin and Ben Oppenheim, Florence Galloway,
the Holmes family. Thank you all for coming and sharing with me your
deep concerns, and for sharing with others your concern about how to
make sure Medicare fulfills its promise.
I want to thank the docs who are here, one from California and one
from Florida. I asked him if he'd ever heard of the Governor down
there. (Laughter.) Dr. Bangasser and Dr. Thompson -- I want to
thank them for being here, as well. They're men who are deeply
concerned about the health and welfare of our seniors, who understand
firsthand the problems that Medicare faces.
The health care system that we have in America is unique and strong
in many ways. After all, we lead the world in dramatic medical
advances. And that's really positive. It's important, as we think
about medical policy, that we encourage innovation in our health
system. After all, live-saving drugs are helping millions of senior
citizens -- millions of senior citizens to live longer and to have
healthier lives.
New drugs are available to treat diabetes, for example, and that's
a positive development for many of our seniors. New drugs are
available to prevent serious complications from heart disease, or
cancer, and that's incredibly positive news, as well. Yet, as many in
this room can testify, the costs of these treatments are really high.
Because Medicare does not cover most prescription drugs, many seniors
often pay the highest price for drugs, forcing too many to choose with
either paying for pills or paying for their bills.
Members of Congress in both House and Senate are working on
legislation, and that's a positive development. And that's good;
they're hearing my call, and your call to do something about Medicare.
In the House, the committees and the leadership are drafting
legislation to help seniors immediately with drug costs, and to ensure
every senior has access to prescription drug coverage. That's a
positive development, and we're hopeful to get this legislation out of
the House very soon.
In the Senate, there is a bipartisan group working on legislation
to provide prescription drug coverage, and improve Medicare. And I
support their efforts, as well. So we've got something to work with.
And I urge you all to not only pay attention to the process, but let
your voices be heard, as the process -- the legislative process
starts heading down toward hopefully a conclusion this year.
(Applause.)
My administration is doing some things in the short-term that I'd
like to share with you. We're working for a Medicare endorse drug
card, that will allow seniors to get lower prices from drug
manufacturers right away. (Applause.) I unleashed the idea a while
back. It kind of got snagged up in the courts. Now we're working to
get it unsnagged in the courts, for the benefit of our seniors. This
is a good idea, and this will help.
We're also working on temporary assistance with drug costs for
seniors with limited incomes. We're trying to bridge toward the time
when full prescription drug benefits become available. In other words,
we want to help people who need help immediately. Those are two ideas
that we're working with Congress on.
Medicare also needs to give every single affordable, up-to-date,
health insurance coverage option to get the most out of Medicare.
(Applause.) Right now in America, more than five million Medicare
members have access to a valuable program, to a modern health insurance
program with modern health benefits, called Medicare plus Choice.
(Applause.)
Medicare plus Choice is a vital program if we're going to meet our
commitments to our seniors. And Congress ought to understand how vital
the program is, and how important the program is. They need to listen
not only to me -- of course, I'd like them to listen a little more to
me -- but to the folks here, in this room, the people who
understand.
Now, let me give you some interesting facts. Many Medicare
members, including those with limited means, including those with low
incomes, prefer these private health plans because they provide more
benefits than traditional Medicare at lower cost. If you find an idea
that provides better benefits, at lower cost, it seems like it makes
sense that people up on the Hill there would understand that.
(Applause.)
The improved benefits and innovative treatments have given Fred
Salazar the assistance he needed to get his diabetes under control.
That's not just theory, that's actually happened. Ben Oppenheim
improved his arthritis, and lowered the amount he spends on his
arthritis treatment, through an exercise program provided in his health
plan. Florence Galloway got the bills paid for the care she needed
when she fell and broke a backbone in Spain. She got the care she
needed. Arina Holmes was hospitalized with a serious illness. She was
not saddled with hundreds of dollars of deductibles and co-payments for
her care.
These are examples, right here, of people who have benefited in a
real way from the innovative options under Medicare plus. Some plans
in Medicare plus even make it possible for their members to help other
seniors, with transportation or grocery shopping or yard work or other
needs. That's also very positive. (Applause.)
What's important to understand is that almost none of the
treatments that I described are programs that can save and improve
lives and reduce health care costs are part of Medicare's defined
benefits. Many are only available through Medicare's private plans,
and that's important to understand. As we discuss Medicare and it's
reform, it's important to understand that the defined benefit plan in
Medicare limits the capacity of seniors to meet their needs. And that
doesn't seem right to me. (Applause.)
Dr. Thompson -- Dr. Isaac Thompson said this: Medicare plus
Choice has served as a safety net for my patients, and for tens of
thousands of beneficiaries, so many of whom are low income, and would
otherwise not to be able to afford the drugs they need. This is Dr.
Thompson speaking, a man who makes a living off of helping seniors, a
person who understands Medicare and Medicare plus Choice, and the
differences between the two.
You know, as he talks eloquently about low income seniors, the myth
is somehow that if seniors are given choice, low income seniors will
not benefit; that if we provide more options for our senior citizens to
tailor plans that meet their needs, that somehow the low income will be
left behind. That's the opposite of what Dr. Thompson has learned,
because it is the opposite of what happens with Medicare plus Choice.
(Applause.)
We've got to address this issue straight on. Millions of Medicare
members don't have the option to choose benefits from private health
plans. And access to these benefits for everyone in Medicare is
threatened. Under current law, private health plans cannot compete in
Medicare in the same way that the federal government has long provided
for people who work for the federal government.
I've always found that to be pretty interesting, that the people
who make the laws here in Washington -- good, fine people from both
political parties -- make sure that the federal employees have
choice. They trust the federal employees with whom they work to be
able to go into the marketplace and figure out what best suits their
needs. And yet, when it comes to our seniors, through Medicare, they
don't get the same benefits. It seems like to me that the Congress
ought to be consistent with how they view -- (applause).
You know better than me -- or you know as well as I do, at least
-- that the current system hasn't reflected rising costs. The lack of
enthusiasm for choice for seniors has affected budgets. And therefore,
100 private plans have left Medicare, and millions of seniors have lost
the valuable additional benefits that private plans provide. To be
blunt about it, it seems like Medicare plus Choice is getting slowly
starved. And we've got to change that. (Applause.)
Part of my message today is I want to work with you to provide more
choices and more savings for our seniors. (Applause.) I'm a person
who trusts people. See, I trust the American people. The American
people are fantastic, great citizens. We've got to trust people with
their own choices in life. I'd rather have the American people make
choices than the federal government make choices on their behalf.
(Applause.)
We need a fair system of competition. We need a system that
guarantees that patient protections and all of Medicare's required
benefits are included in every choice; a system that encourages
additional benefits and options for better care at lower cost,
including improved medical savings accounts.
That's what we need to think about, and that's where we ought to
head here in America. The costs savings from competitive reforms are
essential. They're essential. If you notice, and the people will
testify to this, that there are lower costs in Medicare plus Choice.
And those cost savings in a Medicare plus Choice plan are very
important for the future, for your children and your grandchildren to
be able to have a Medicare system that works.
We must this year pass legislation that gives all seniors secure
access to prescription drugs, along with up-to-date, lower cost
coverage options in Medicare. That's the goal. (Applause.) I believe
strongly that we've got to make sure that our seniors understand that
if you're happy with your current Medicare coverage, nothing changes.
There are a lot of our citizens who worry that any kind of
strengthening of the system will maybe disrupt their current health
plans. And I can understand that. I can understand someone who is
perhaps content with the way things are, and shouldn't be forced to
change, particularly at this point in somebody's life. And I respect
that. And any reform must honor that. We've got to make sure,
however, that the promise of prescription drugs is a part of any plan,
and that we recognize that as treatments change, as the ability to
treat a disease changes with modern times, that the people we're trying
to help are able to realize those benefits.
You see, Medicare was written a while ago, in such a way that it
doesn't have the ability to change. And so all of a sudden, technology
is heading here, and Medicare is stuck back here. And Medicare plus
Choice has provided seniors with the ability to stay up with
technology. That's why you're so supportive of it, and that's why I
am, as well. But we've got to make sure that the whole system moves
with the technological change, so we can benefit -- all of us, not
just the young, but all of us can benefit from the new technologies
available to help save lives.
I believe that when we trust people with their -- trust their
decisions, and trust their judgment about how best to care for
themselves, a better plan evolves. A much better plan than one
designed by some green eye-shades up on Capitol Hill. (Applause.)
Because it will be a plan designed by the consumers, not by the
planners. It's a plan that evolves as a result of the collective
decisions of people we're trying to help -- not by some who aren't
even in the plan.
And so what we're talking about today is recognizing the importance
of Medicare plus Choice, what it means to people's lives in real terms;
how it can positively affect people that we have a moral obligation to
help; but also, how best to incorporate the principles of the plan to
expand it, to make it work for more seniors, and at the same time, make
sure Medicare works for people like me, when it's my time -- to make
sure that it's not only healthy today, but healthy tomorrow -- that
it can exist and be available. (Applause.)
I believe we can make good progress, but we need your help. We --
frankly, there are some up there that really don't like this plan. And
I understand that. I mean, what the heck, that's the great thing about
democracy -- not everybody agrees a hundred percent of the time. We
all agree we need to help the seniors, and that's important. But to
the extent that you can help influence opinion, it's really important.
It is, people listen. People listen. People around here listen to
opinion, and they listen to people such as yourself, who understand
what you're talking about. And we need your help to get this done.
There's a reluctance, but it's okay. It's -- you've seen
reluctance in your life before. You've lived a good, strong, full life
in the service of your country, many of you, and now is your chance to
provide a unique service, an important service not only for yourself,
but future generations that are coming up, by spreading the word, by
contacting your congressman or your senator, let them know. Let them
know the importance of this program and this idea.
I also want to thank you for your service to the country. You
know, you know better than me that -- you've see a lot of America in
your day, and it's a fabulous country that we're able to call home.
It's a -- what a remarkable land, where we share common values,
people from all walks of life come into -- underneath this unique
experiment called America. Our spirit is strong. It's never been more
needed these days, of course, as we make it clear to the world the
world and to an enemy that we'll defend our freedoms at any cost.
You know, I like to remind people, those that attacked, they must
have thought that we were so selfish and so weak and so materialistic,
that we might file a couple of lawsuits or two, but that's all we were
going to do. (Laughter.) They found out we think a little differently
here in America when it comes to our freedom. (Applause.) And that
when it comes to our freedoms that we love -- the freedom to worship
the way each of us sees fit, the freedom to raise our family the way we
think is necessary, the freedom to speak out, freedom of the press --
the freedoms that we hold dear, if anybody attacks those freedoms,
we'll defend them. We'll defend them.
You need to know about me, that I am as resolved as I was the day
after the attack, today. I know my duty, and my duty is to protect
America in the best way -- (applause) -- and as we do so, I believe
we'll make the world safer. I long for peace. I just want you to know
and assure you that the actions my administration takes has a lofty
goal in mind, and that's peace. Peace for our country, peace around
the world. That's why we do what we do.
But we need to make the world not only safer, but better, a better
place. And one way we can make the world a better place is to make
sure our seniors are treated with dignity, by starting with a health
care plan that provides options. (Applause.)
So I want to thank you all for coming to this magnificent house,
the White House. It's -- as you can imagine, it's an honor to be
here, and it's an honor to welcome you here. May God bless you all,
and may God bless America. (Applause.)