PolitiFact has examined numerous claims by Republicans and Democrats about Medicare.
Below are abbreviated versions of a few of those fact-checks. The entire fact-checks can be found by going to our national site website (http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/). Comment on PolitiFact Georgia rulings at our Facebook page (
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The Romney-Ryan plan for Medicare “does not affect” benefits for anyone 55 or older. — U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.)
Ryan wants seniors to know his and Romney’s Medicare plan “does not affect your benefits.” Indeed, it would not affect people currently 55 and older.
But Ryan’s assurance does not take into account that their plan is also to “repeal and replace Obamacare,” which adds certain benefits. Repealing the law would take away benefits for current enrollees.
We rate his claim Half True.
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Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan “want to turn Medicare into a voucher system.” — President Barack Obama last month on the campaign trail.
In the world of policy wonks, there are distinctions between “vouchers” and “premium support,” having to do with the type of inflation adjustment used and the degree of marketplace regulation imposed. Compared with his original plan, Ryan’s most recent plan does move closer to fitting the definition of pure premium support. But substantively, it’s still somewhere in between the two approaches.
But the Romney-Ryan approach pretty much matches the dictionary definition of “a form or check indicating a credit against future purchases or expenditures.” We think that describes the general way Ryan’s plan would work.
For a political discussion aimed at voters rather than policy wonks, we think Obama’s use of the term “voucher” is close.
We rate his statement Mostly True.
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“Under the president’s plan, he cuts Medicare by $716 billion, takes that money out of the Medicare trust fund and uses it to pay for Obamacare.” — Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in a TV interview last month.
Romney’s claim gives the impression that the law takes money that was already allocated to Medicare and funds the new health care law with it.
In fact, the law uses a number of measures to try to reduce the rapid growth of future Medicare spending. Those savings are then used to offset costs created by the law — especially coverage for the uninsured — so that the overall law doesn’t add to the deficit.
We rate Romney’s statement Half True.
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Ryan’s budget proposal “eliminates Medicare” in 10 years. — U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, talking to donors at a fundraiser.
“These guys have laid it out where they want us to be,” Biden old attendees at the event in Tulsa, Okla., on Aug. 30, 2011. “Paul Ryan laid out their budget. Their budget eviscerates — it eliminates Medicare. They say it doesn’t. It makes it a voucher program. I call that eliminating Medicare in the next 10 years.”
But Biden is off-base.
The bottom line is that all seniors would continue to be offered coverage under Ryan’s proposal, and the program’s budget would increase every year. The plan would reduce the growth in Medicare spending, but not wipe out that spending.
It changes Medicare, dramatically. But it does not eliminate it.
We rate Biden’s statement False.
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