Washington

President Bush's principles for bipartisan Medicare reform, which he hopes Congress will adhere to when hammering out Medicare reform legislation this year, have garnered the support of several congressmen.

“Medicare reform is one of the most important, as well as one of the most vexing, issues facing Congress today. Medicare saved my mother's life — not once, but twice,” said Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La., chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. “I'm determined to work with President Bush to ensure that vitally important Medicare programs will always be there for every single American in their golden years.”

“I look forward to working with my colleagues to enact into law this year needed reforms in the Medicare program and a permanent prescription drug benefit,” said Michael Bilirakis, R-Fla., chairman of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. “I believe this is an important step towards modernizing, strengthening and stabilizing the Medicare program — a program which gives so many benefits to so many Americans.”

The president's framework for bipartisan legislation includes the following principles:

• All seniors should have the option of a subsidized prescription drug benefit as part of modernized Medicare;

• Modernized Medicare should provide better benefits coverage for preventive care and serious illnesses;

• Today's beneficiaries and those approaching retirement should have the option of keeping the traditional plan with no changes;

• Medicare should provide better health insurance options, like those available to all federal employees;

• Medicare legislation should strengthen the program's long-term financial security;

• The management of the Medicare plan should be strengthened so that it can provide better care for seniors;

• Medicare's regulations and administrative procedures should be updated and streamlined, while the instances of fraud and abuse should be reduced;

• Medicare should encourage high-quality health care for all seniors.

“Now, I understand politics pretty well, and I'm afraid the American people do, too,” said President Bush. “They've seen what happens with the Medicare issue. That's why, in the political vernacular, they call it ‘Mediscare,’ because somebody who comes along and tries to do what's right will have the issue used against them for political purposes.

“The truth of the matter is, I'm not afraid of the issue, because this is the right thing to do,” Bush continued. “We've got a lot of baby boomers, like me, fixing to retire. And we had better make sure we modernize the system, to make sure the system is whole and sound for tomorrow's seniors.”

For breaking news, go to www.homecaremonday.com, the electronic news service of the home medical equipment industry.