Democrats playing long game over healthcare reforms

Published on Thursday 26 May 2011 16:37

United States senators have rejected a budget plan that would have transformed the country's cash-strapped healthcare programme for retirees, setting out a key battleground for next year's election in the process.

In a vote that fell largely along party lines, the upper house of Congress rejected a Republican blueprint which would have replaced existing Medicare provisions with a cheaper, voucher-like system.

Democrats instigated the ballot for clear political gain, accusing their opponents of attempting to dismantle the hugely popular programme through backdoor privatisation. In a return shot, Representative Paul Ryan, the architect of the plan, said political rivals were guilty of "demagoguing and distorting" his proposals.

Both sides appear to be entrenching their positions on what is likely to be one of the big issues in 2012's presidential election.

The decision to turn up the heat on Republicans over Medicare was made by Democrat leaders after a surprise victory earlier this week in a race for a vacant congressional seat. The run-off, in a traditionally Republican district in upstate New York, saw voters turn on conservatives over the plan to overhaul healthcare for the elderly.

Seeking to capitalise on the win, Senate Democrats immediately pushed for a vote on the Ryan plan in an attempt to tie Republicans to proposals deemed to be unpopular with the wider public.

The strategy was a success. Earlier this week, all but five of the Republican Party's 47 Senate members voted in favour of Mr Ryan's budget plan, putting them on record as supporting the proposals. But the blueprint was defeated, with a uniform No vote from Democrats, who hold a majority in the Senate.

Republicans forced a counter ballot on president Barack Obama's February budget proposals. But Democrats joined Republicans in voting against the plan, which had already been superseded by Mr Obama himself in a more recent address on how to reduce the US government deficit.

Mr Ryan's plan would have slashed the national debt by more than $5 trillion over the next decade. His proposals included cutting the cost of Medicare by converting it into a system in which recipients would buy subsidised health insurance. Currently, the government pays hospital and doctor bills directly.

Opponents say the proposals would result in shrinking state assistance, leaving retirees to either opt for less generous policies or pay thousands of dollars in premiums every year to maintain the standard of care they currently receive.

In addition, the Ryan plan would see funding to Medicaid - which provides health cover for the poor - slashed, and a series of other domestic schemes ended.

Republicans claim drastic cuts are needed to help balance the government's books.

US politicians are currently trying to forge agreement over how to rein in America's soaring government debt.Congress has until 2 August to raise a debt ceiling of $14.3 trillion or face defaulting on its obligations.

Conservatives in Washington have suggested they will not agree to increase the limit without concrete debt reduction plans being put in place first. Some Republicans have attacked Democrats for rejecting Ryan's plan while not having a credible alternative to bring to the negotiating table themselves.

But in forcing Republicans to go on the record over proposals to overhaul Medicare, Democrats appear to be playing the long game, squaring up for a bruising fight now in order to gain the upper hand next year.

Bill Galston, a former policy adviser to president Bill Clinton, suggested Republicans were playing into Democrat hands over Medicare.

"It will be a central issue in the 2012 election," he said. "It is not the Democrats who are tying Republicans to the policy, it is Republicans doing it themselves.

"If the American people have the same understanding of the issue as they do now, it will be very damaging for Republicans."

But Mr Galston, a senior fellow at Washington-based think-tank the Brookings Institution, warned against assuming that Medicare would be the deciding factor for many voters: "The 2012 election will be fought on three issues: the overriding state of the economy, fiscal considerations and healthcare - both President Obama's healthcare bill and Medicare."