Robbing Medicare? Part II

In a previous recent blog post, I argued why the Health Care Reform law was essential due to its cessation of fraud and abuse. I cited a 60 Minutes report from 2010 showing how $60 billion per year was going straight into the pockets of fraudulent claims set up by organized crime circuits. I did not, however, realize two things: One, there was more than just fraud going on. If one counts waste, abuse and inefficiency of Medicare, the number easily exceeds $70 billion. And two, I also didn't realize that the Romney campaign's claim of $700 billion "robbed" from Medicare "to pay for Obamacare," is a projection over 10 years. Previous projections were made out to several years, which is where the $500 billion claim previously came from. Project it out to ten years, and it comes to $700 billion.

Well, this is now the third time I've had to amend that post. (That'll teach me to go off half-cocked.) So here's what I should have said then:

Take that over-$70-billion that Obamacare saves by putting a stop to the organized criminals stealing from the Medicare system, as well as the wasteful inefficiencies within it, and project that out ten years. There's your $716 billion dollars! That amount, which Romney and his cronies are claiming Obama robbed to pay for Romneycare II, is actually money that Obama stole back from Medicare thieves!

I have no problem with Obama stealing back $700 billion from Medicare crooks to pay for "Obamacare." Do you?

Politifact did issue its evaluation of this particular claim of Mitt Romney's campaign. It rated it mostly false. But it didn't go far enough in realizing just how much criminality was policed by Healthcare Reform, and how the dollar amount saved in this way matches the $700 billion quote almost perfectly. Well, Politifact should have rated this one as 'Pants on Fire!'

But my evaluation of Politifact will have to be a different blog post.

Eric

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