AARP CEO Bill Novelli —Photo by Melanie Dunea

This June, Congress will decide whether and how to cover the costs of paying more to doctors who participate in the Medicare program. Unless Congress makes changes, we run the risk of more and more physicians being unwilling to take Medicare patients. We are already seeing evidence of this in some areas.

Of course doctors should be paid fairly. However, in the course of increasing payments to doctors, Congress could impose still more Part B premium increases on Medicare beneficiaries. This simply is not fair.

Since 2000, monthly premiums have more than doubled. And since 2005 health care costs nationally have increased at twice the rate of inflation, with no end in sight. On average, Medicare covers only half of a beneficiary’s out-of-pocket health care costs and only nursing home stays of 100 days or less. And so beneficiaries are hit with a double whammy of higher premiums and skyrocketing costs. In addition, they may still have to pay in full when they buy eyeglasses or hearing aids, go to the dentist or need more than 100 days of skilled nursing care.

We cannot keep shifting the costs of a broken health care system onto patients and their families, including older Americans. Raising Medicare premiums even more would be a burden to many beneficiaries, and it could discourage some people from getting the health care they need. Each year, Part B increases take a bigger bite out of Social Security checks. That simply isn’t right.

There are other ways to solve this problem without placing further burdens on beneficiaries. One way is to reduce excess payments to private Medicare plans, also known as Medicare Advantage (MA). These plans have been promoted as more efficient than the traditional, government-run Medicare program. Yet, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office, in 2006 Medicare paid MA plans $59 billion—an estimated $7.1 billion more than it would have paid if the people enrolled in MA plans had instead received care through traditional Medicare. We need to reduce Medicare spending in other areas of the program as well.

We are urging Congress to “Keep Medicare Fair,” and not to solve the physician payment problem by raising the premiums of Medicare beneficiaries even further. We are conducting a major legislative campaign, and we are asking for your help. In addition to community activity, advertising and visits to the Washington and district offices of members of Congress, we are urging AARP members to sign an online petition. So far, more than 160,000 members have done so. Please add your name. To sign the petition, go to www.KeepMedicareFair.org.

More than 44 million Americans rely on Medicare every day for health coverage. It is a system that works, but it has to be kept affordable. Really, enough is enough. Please join in. It’s time to tell Congress to keep Medicare premiums fair.