Newt Gingrich: New Ryan-Wyden Medicare plan a "breakthrough"

Rep. Paul Ryan

Republican presidential frontrunner Newt Gingrich is reacting positively to a bipartisan Medicare reform plan, tweeting, "The Wyden-Ryan bipartisan Medicare reform plan is a major breakthrough with Democrats and Republicans working together to solve big problems."

The plan in question, from Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan and Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, would keep traditional Medicare as an option for new retirees when it goes into effect in 2022, though private insurance would also be able to engage in regulated competition with the government-run health care plan. The eligibility age would remain at 65 under the new plan.

Ryan, the House budget chairman, caused an uproar among Democrats for his earlier plan to turn Medicare into a voucher-like program. House Republicans voted almost universally in favor of that plan in April. Democrats, who claim Republicans sought to "end Medicare" (a claim Politifact deemed "pants on fire"), have been planning to use that vote against vulnerable members of the GOP in 2012 elections.

In addition to preserving traditional Medicare, the new plan would offer seniors who opt for a private plan the possibility of a larger fixed payment than they would have gotten under Ryan's earlier plan. (The "premium support" subsidy would increase or decrease with the cost of policies.) The new plan would save far less than Ryan's previous effort.

Appearing on Iowa Public Television Thursday morning, Gingrich heaped praise on the new plan, calling it "a bipartisan effort to really come to grips with one of the major entitlement challenges we face."

"And to have that bill introduced and have them publicly together talking about this is really a healthy - maybe it's the beginning of breaking up the logjam, and starting to get Democrats and Republicans to talk to each other, and I think that Paul Ryan and Ron Wyden deserve some real credit for having had - this is a very courageous thing for each of them to do, to reach out, come together, and offer a genuinely bipartisan bill given the atmosphere you have in Washington," he said.

Gingrich's presidential campaign suffered an early blow when the former House Speaker dubbed Ryan's initial plan "radical change" and "right-wing social engineering" in May, prompting anger from Ryan and other Republicans. Mitt Romney's campaign has criticized Gingrich for that position, releasing a scathing web ad last week spotlighting the comments. Gingrich first backed off those comments to some extent before stating last month that "it was a technical mistake, but what I said was true." 

Romney's campaign sent reporters a release in response to Gingrich's comments Thursday morning suggesting Gingrich was now adopting his fifth position on the issue - a critique that squares with Romney's recent criticism of Gingrich as "an unreliable conservative."

"Nothing better illustrates Speaker Gingrich's unreliable leadership than his tortured position on the Ryan plan," said Romney Communications Director Gail Gitcho, who went on to criticize Gingrich for calling the new plan "courageous."

"The real 'courageous' step was when Paul Ryan proposed a bold reform plan in the face of unfair attacks from Democrats and Speaker Gingrich alike," said Gitcho.

In an earlier statement, Romney Spokeswoman Andrea Saul said the campaign was "very pleased to see that Congressman Ryan has introduced a Medicare reform proposal that aligns so closely with what Governor Romney proposed last month. This bipartisan plan proves once again that Governor Romney has thoughtful, workable solutions to the looming entitlement crisis."

[nonpolitico]

Having lived in Europe and experienced the UK Health Service for a while, it works. Everyone has access to "free" medical care.
However, as with all Socialised medicine, it costs the country (ie The taxpayer, the worker and the companies) in contributions paid weekly/monthly, and also when there are shortages in care people can "go private".
In reality "going private" in UK means getting to see the specialist of your choice when you wish. Average cost per visit £200.
Or you can wait on a waiting list for as long as 8 months!!
It covers all yeah, but some NHS hospitals have problems with care and other matters. (like cleanliness).
Me, I go for the US option (so far) as Socialised medicine is an outgrowth of Socialism, which the old USSR had in abundance!
Keep an eye on all candidates as far as Obamacare is concerned is my advice!Strengthenig Medicare would be a better/simpler option for USA. Having watched the number of Bureaucrats it takes to run an NHS hospital we should avoid getting more government into health provision like the plague!!

[venusvegasvada]

So if your 54 and under and have spent your life's blood pouring money into the system, your screwed? That's your great idea?

Coming from a bunch of two-faced Congressmen than have a separate plan for themselves, it's dead on arrival. Before you start screwing us over you need to get on the same plan as everyone else. Just who do you guys think you are anyway? Royalty? I don't remember seeing anything in the Constitution that says Congressmen should replace royalty.

As far as your latest attempt to screw us over goes, thanks anyway, but I think I'll take SS and Medicare and Medicaid just the way they are, thank you very much. We ALREADY PUT OUR MONEY IN FOR IT. YOU IDIOTS TOOK IT. PUT IT BACK.

If you want to fix it, get rid of for profit medical care. That's the problem. Top paid CEO's are in charge of medical companies. At 140 million per year, they make a regular American CEO (at 8 million a year) look like a WalMart employee. No wonder the country is going broke. NO LEADERSHIP.

[marychgo]

I useta think I liked Ron Wyden; NO MORE! I assume he really believes the "competition cuts costs" garbage at the basis of his "compromise" with Ryan, but the fact is it's long since been proven false.

I spent years designing and selling group insurance plans and arrived, with my associates, at a simple analysis of how the healthcare "market" works. Just about everyone is willing to wait for care and accept care from any competent practitioner when our complaint is a broken ankle or the flu. But when we receive a diagnosis of cancer or serious heart disease or anything else that stands a good chance of killing us, we demand the best doctors and the best hospitals on the face of the earth.

Competition does NOTHING to deal with that market reality. Instead, it guarantees that ten or fifteen or twenty cents out of every dollar we devote to healthcare will be suctioned off to pay insurance company administrative expenses and insurance company profits. And it limits the bargaining power of any particular insurance company in dealing with providers and pharmaceutical companies. It's a lousy idea, even if a misguided Democrat from Oregon has signed on to support it!

[venusvegasvada]

You guys don't get it do you?

SCREW the Ryan-Wyden Medicare plan.

The first thing you Congress people need to do is get rid of your golden parachute plan and jump in with the rest of us.

Second, you don't tell someone who's pushing 50 or older that all the money they have pumped into the system for the best years of the their working lives (which money you idiots in Washington stole for other BS programs-that's why it's broke in the first place) that they have to eat it and that's that.

You eat it Congressmen. You need to fix the obscene costs of Medical care in this country. Reign in your buddy Lawyers that have screwed over everyone for profit.

Implement the "Loser Pay's" legal system in the US.

Get rid of "For Profit" medical care. It's a failure. Too expensive. Your best plan is to force a bunch of broke people to pay for the Rich's companies in order to get health care? Your out of your minds.

[1988JAck]

Bull, it's no breakthrough. read about it. It's just another crack for the rich to get a toe hold on the middle and lower classes.

[phatandphoolish]

break through from these lying morons = screw the american public.

[rightbehind]

The democrat associated with this needs to be sent packing along with ryan.

[freepress6]

About the only thing the Ryan-Wyden plan "breaks," is the safety net for the elderly ill on fixed incomes. I remember when Medicare got "fixed," with a donut hole and people have been dying in it ever since.
Sterling Greenwood/AspenFreePress

[jasperlily]

Paul says that Medicare isn't in the Constitution. Duh. Lots of things aren't in the Constitution, like Emergency Rooms, Animal Rescue, etc. What isn't in the Constitution is that our self-serving legislators can award themselves free fantastic medical care at taxpayer expense, lifetime pensions at taxpayer expense, working only 109 days in 2012 but at full pay, refuse to pay their fair share of taxes through loopholes they themselves created - for themselves.

[abundy2]

Newt didn't flop. He said eliminating Medicare would be unsuccessful as the Libtards would use it as fodder for their re-election campaigns... the only thing they really care about. Newt is right. This plan is what is needed to ACTUALLY GET positive change. Eliminating Medicare will be easy once people can choose to leave it (their Doctors already have). Medicare is the BetaMax of Liberals own ideology. Besides, if you want free healthcare - move to Germany/England/France, etc and leave everyone in the USA under our own system alone! Stop trying to dictate to everyone under some Eutopian mandate you freaks.

[rightbehind]

Ryan wants to stick some stockholders between you and your health care. Want to take a guess who will win that battle? You, "might" be covered. Ryan represents the big government pay your favorite insurance company. Ryan needs to be sent packing along with any democrat who sponsors his plan.