WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today in the U.S. Capitol, Sen. Rand Paul introduced his Medicare Reform Plan, the Congressional Health Care for Seniors Act (CHCSA) – S. 2196 – with co-sponsors Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Mike Lee (R-Utah) and Jim DeMint (R-S.C.). CHCSA will not only fix the Medicare system in its entirety, it also saves taxpayers $1 trillion in the first 10 years. This plan will provide better health care benefits, choice, quality, and outcomes by enrolling all senior citizens into the same health care plan as Members of Congress and other federal employees.

“As a doctor, I have had firsthand experience with the vast problems facing health care in the United States. Medicare, as we know it, is broken and in desperate need of reform. The CHCSA fixes the Medicare system, and gives Seniors access to the best health care plans enjoyed currently by Members of Congress and does so without breaking the bank; in fact this plan will save taxpayers $1 trillion over 10 years” Sen. Paul said. “Seniors deserve to have a world-class health care system, and Americans deserve to have their tax payer dollars put to better use, in a system that will not eventually bankrupt this country.”

“Allowing Medicare recipients to enroll in the FEHBP is a win for both seniors and the taxpayer. The FEHBP fosters competition among its hundreds of individual plans, provides better benefits for enrollees, and offers much wider choice and flexibility to participants. Most importantly, switching to the FEHBP will save the American people more than $1 trillion over the next decade. Frankly, it’s hard to argue against this common sense reform because the FEHBP covers every Member of Congress and all federal employees. Our seniors on Medicare should have the opportunity to enroll as well” Sen. Lee said.
 
“Our goal is to save Medicare from bankruptcy and ensure seniors have affordable, high-quality health care — a crisis President Obama has only made worse during his time in office. Allowing seniors access to the Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB) program, which Members of Congress and federal employees use, will give them more choices and lower their out-of-pocket costs. It’s also good for the taxpayers because it will save the federal government $1 trillion over the next decade and reduce the unfunded liability of Medicare by $16 trillion. To get our nation’s fiscal house in order we must address future entitlement spending. Our bill gets a handle on Medicare costs, which continue to escalate, and ensures the program is sustainable for future generations” Sen. Graham said.

“This is a common-sense solution that gives seniors more control over their own health care, access to more doctors and better quality care,” Sen. DeMint said. “Doing nothing is not an option because we cannot allow Medicare to go bankrupt and for doctors to close their doors to seniors. For the first time, seniors will also have the freedom to keep private plans they like instead of being forced into a one-size-fits-all government plan. This bill improves health care for seniors, saves taxpayers trillions of dollars, and will help save our economy from unsustainable generational debt.”