I was having lunch today with another insurance broker, and she showed me an email she had received that had some frightening information about the future of Medicare….and it had to do with “Obamacare”.  Here is part of the email:

I had one of the most troubling, most disturbing conversations ever with Julie’s sister-in-law, Dr. Suzanne Allen, head of emergency services at the Johnson City Medical Center in Tennessee.

We were discussing the “future” and I asked her had she seen any affects of Obama Care in her work?

“Oh, yes. We are seeing cutbacks throughout the services we provide. For example, we are now having to deal with patients who would normally receive dialysis can no longer be accepted. In the past, there was always automatic approval under Medicare for anyone who needed dialysis — not anymore.” So, what will be their outcome? “They will die soon without dialysis,” she stated.

I assumed this was a bogus story because it sounded a lot like the “death panel” emails that went around in 2010.  So I pulled out my i-pad and googled the subject line of the email. I found plenty of links to stories about this email that is being passed on from uninformed and gullible people to their likewise gullible friends and family.

Factcheck.org had this to say about the story.

The frightening claims in this email about losing control of one’s health care decisions have caused consternation among some of our readership — particularly the fear of losing all health care after age 75. But fear not, this email is bunkum.

The email presents a veneer of authenticity. There is, in fact, a Johnson City Medical Center. It is a not-for-profit center located in Johnson City, Tenn., that serves as “a safety net hospital caring for the uninsured.” And there is a Dr. Suzanne Allen who works in emergency medicine at that center. But that is where any truth to this email ends.

We contacted Ed Herbert, a representative for the Johnson City Medical Center. He confirmed to us that the conversation quoted in the email is fraudulent. According to Herbert, a guest of Dr. Allen’s home created the untrue email to further a political point.

It is sad and pathetic that there are people out there spreading these lies – and frightening seniors. Given that this is the second go-round for these lies, and they have been debunked, it is especially sad that people are still falling for them.  It reminds me of the saying, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me”. Come on, people! Wake up and realize these people are playing you for fools!

An email being sent to seniors, warning of large increases in the Medicare Part B premium.  But is the email accurate?  Factcheck.org looked at the accusations in the email and found them all to be false.

EMAIL BEING SENT TO SENIORS:

MEDICARE PAY INCREASE:  For those of you who are on Medicare (or will be soon), read the short article below.

It is about the monthly amount of money you are going to pay into Medicare in 2011, 2012 and the huge increase you will pay in 2013. You will pay it.

Social Security:  Congress will not allow an increase in the social security COLA (cost of living adjustment). However, the per person monthly Medicare insurance premium will be increased from the 2009 premium of $96.40 to $104.20 in 2010, $120.20 for the year 2011, AND a yearly increase to a wonderful $247.00 in 2014. Thank You Obamacare!

In the meantime, Congress gave themselves a $3,000 a month Cost of Living Adjustment!

Send this to all seniors that you know.

REMEMBER IN NOVEMBER 2012

THE TRUTH:                                 

Factcheck.org investigated these claims and found:

It falsely claims “Congress gave themselves a $3,000 a month Cost of Living Adjustment,” when the truth is that Congress voted to deny itself any pay increase at all, both for 2010 and 2011.

§  It wrongly blames Congress for disallowing any cost-of-living increase for Social Security recipients. It’s true there was no COLA for Social Security recipients in 2010 or in 2011, but that was due to the workings of a long-standing formula and not the result of any vote by the current Congress or the previous one. We covered this in detail in 2009 and the Social Security Administration has an explanation posted as well.

§  It claims that “those of you who are on Medicare” can thank “Obamacare” for increases in the per-person monthly Medicare premium — “to a wonderful $247.00 in 2014.” This is also false. The basic premium for Medicare Part B (which covers physician services) was indeed $96.40 in 2009. But the other numbers are all wrong. It was $110.50 last year, for example, and not $104.20 as claimed. And it is $115.40 this year, not $120.20 as claimed.

Actually, only 27 percent of Medicare beneficiaries are paying the basic rate. The rest — 73 percent — are paying less under a “hold harmless” provision triggered by the lack of a cost-of-living increase in Social Security this year or last year. Most are still paying $96.40.

There is a lot of misinformation about Medicare on the internet, in the press, and in the minds of many seniors. Recently, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPac) produced  a data book on Medicare spending which offers numbers and charts  to provide a clear view of Medicare.  The information debunks many of the myths that are part of the public perception of Medicare.

Healthbeat blog author Maggie Mahar  studied the MedPac data and wrote about it in her blog.  I have provided excerpts of her analysis below:

MYTH #1:  Physicians have been refusing to take new Medicare patients and many seniors have a hard time making appointments.

FACT: The MedPac report shows that Medicare patients reported having as good or better access to doctors than did privately insured patients during the period of 2006 to 2009.  This also applied to making appointments with primary care physicians.

MYTH #2: The bulk of Medicare dollars are spent on acute care during the final weeks of life.

FACT: According the MedPac report, about 25% of Medicare dollars are spent on patients during the final year of life- not the final weeks.

MYTH #3:  Medicare reimbursements to physicians have remained flat or were down over the past decade.

FACT: MedPac data show that from 1998 to 2008 Medicare fee-for-service reimbursements to physicians climbed by 75%.

Mahar notes that the 75% increase reflects the fact that Medicare raised fees for some services, but she writes: “most of the hike in income can be traced to higher volume: doctors have been “doing more” as they prescribe more tests and recommend more procedures.”

MYTH #4:  Medicare has been underpaying hospitals for years, and reimbursements rarely match the cost of actually treating the patients, which is why hospitals must charge private insurers more.

FACT: From 1998 to 2008, Medicare fee-for service reimbursements to hospitals for outpatient services climbed by 85%. Mahar notes that the data “suggests that hospitals were performing more tests and procedures on each patient” resulting in higher bills to Medicare.

Mahar writes that the Medpac data show that “hospital profit margins vary widely, but many do make a nice profit on Medicare reimbursements.”

The full post can be read at the Healthbeat blog.