Former Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who once served in the Department of Health and Human Services, warned Medicare benefits would disappear "if we do nothing by 2028."
Joining Newsmax's "Spicer & Co." on Monday, the former Republican congressman said the math has only gotten worse since he was at the HHS, in the early 2000s, for Medicare and Social Security as Baby Boomers enter retirement age.
"The Democrats, by attacking responsible solutions, are ignoring the fact that Medicare's trust fund – the Part A trust fund that pays for hospital visits – will run out of money if we do nothing by 2028."
If President Joe Biden's administration fails to take the situation seriously, Jindal stressed the program would not have enough revenue to cover costs. The 10% reduction starting in 2028, he said, means fewer providers and the "rationing" of care.
"There are responsible changes we can make to modernize, to improve the program that don't raise taxes, that don't cut benefits," Jindal said before noting three important ways to solve the crisis.
"You could save the program over $150 billion over 10 years" by equalizing the amount paid to hospitals for outpatient work and the amount paid for physicians, he claimed. "But even better, you would save seniors almost $100 billion in cost-sharing over 10 years."
Cracking down on Medicare fraud could also provide the agency with more than $40 billion annually that it now loses, Jindal noted. He added: "why don't we invest more in preventative care? Why don't we keep our seniors healthy?"
"These are simple ideas which would save tens and hundreds of billions of dollars, wouldn't cut benefits, wouldn't raise taxes, wouldn't hurt beneficiaries," the former HHS official suggested.
Jindal's comments on Newsmax follow his recent opinion editorial for The Wall Street Journal. There, he and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., discussed a new plan to reform retirement entitlements.
"Congress should continue the long-term reforms necessary to ensure Medicare can keep the commitments made to America's seniors, and it should move toward a premium-support model that encourages savings from competition and benefits taxpayers," the pair wrote.
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