Video: GOP rep says ObamaCare bill tells seniors to “drop dead”

Greg Hengler says that this video shows that Republicans are learning to play the game on health care, but that might actually deny all the credit due to Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite (R-FL). The attack on Medicare Advantage shows the animus Democrats have for insurers, even those who partner with government to help seniors and the disabled gain affordable access to medical care:

I have first-hand experience with Medicare Advantage; the First Mate uses it to make her Medicare coverage workable. To enter the plan, she needs to spend a large percentage of her Social Security disability check each month for the premiums. In return, the MA plan extends coverage on prescriptions and services, and most crucially, works the Medicare payment issues between the government and the providers. Without MA, we would be deep in the hole for her ongoing treatment relating to her kidney transplant and her disabilities, and we consider the premium money well spent.

Medicare Advantage exists as a successful model of government and private insurers working together to deliver better medical care through private-market options. This is, of course, the reason Democrats have to stop it. They need to kill any evidence that insurers can be responsible partners in health care, and they also need the money to make ObamaCare look less expensive. In return, millions of Medicare recipients will have to fall back on the poor coverage of Medicare by itself and deal directly with providers angered over not getting payments.

Make no mistake: an attack on Medicare Advantage is an attack on seniors and the disabled, and a sharp reduction in coverage and care for them. That’s not just hardball — it’s the truth.

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