To secure the coveted senior vote, President Donald Trumpvowed on the campaign trail to protect Medicare at all costs. But now, even Republicans are saying his administration is picking one of the worst imaginable moments to throw that pledge into question.
Read more ‘Laughably bad’: There’s ‘never been a president’ polling worse than Trump
“Regardless of whether it saves some people money, or keeps it flat, many seniors will get spooked,” said Sean Spicer, who served as Trumps press secretary during his first term.
Spicer was speaking on a Wall Street Journal report earlier this week that the administration will end a $3.6 billion subsidy program that has been keeping Part D drug premiums down.
Trump’s Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Chief Mehmet Oz describes the move as “stabilizing the market” by ending what the Trump team considers an insurer “bailout.” Former Politico Senior Washington Correspondent Rachael Bade reports the money was compensating insurers so they could keep prices low for seniors.
Under Trump, that’s now that’s going away, and according to the administration’s own numbers nearly half of Medicaid Part D enrollees will see an $11-to-$20 monthly price jump.
“Let’s start with the population in question itself: Most seniors live on fixed incomes — so an additional $20 a month may seem small, but for some it makes a real difference,” reports Bade. “We all have grandparents who counted every dollar and would seek out grocers or restaurants that offered a ‘senior discount.’ That’s not an exaggeration — that’s just how seniors budget.”
This news, said Spicer, is going to cause panicamong Trump’smost reliable voting bloc.
Read more Trump loses the fifth straight time on appeal — thanks to his own judge
“Ninety-eight days out from a midterm, with the most important voting group that you need to maintain a majority, you don’t do things that say, ‘Hey, guess what — we’re going to screw with your life.’ If you really wanted to do this, kick the can down the road for 90 days,” said Spicer. “… Not a good political move.”
Bade’s co-host Dan Turrentine also noted Trump’s horrible timing.
“I’ll give you three states that have an older population: Maine, Ohio, Iowa,” said Turrentine, ticking off three of the most competitive states this fall.
Worse, Turrentine noted that insurers are legally required to not only pass on those costs to consumers, but also to notify seniors about changes to their premiums, probably around September — just in time for seniors to take their anger to the polls.
Spicer describe the move as: “a free mailer” courtesy of Trump to help Democrats.
“You just basically created a Democratic super PAC by allowing every one of these insurance companies [to notify seniors],” Spicer told Bade and Turrentine. “… They must notify. They have to do it in writing.”
