Bush Proposes Linking the Medicare Drug Premium to Beneficiaries’ Income

One more "feeble" attempt...and more data mining...fewer than 5% would pay increased premiums...but what about the overpayments to private insurers that provide managed care?  BD 

WASHINGTON — President Bush proposed legislation on Friday to increase prescription drug premiums for higher-income Medicare beneficiaries.   Under the proposal, the federal government would have to “release to the public physician-specific measurements of the quality or efficiency” of doctors.

The proposal, which the administration said would generate $3.2 billion of additional revenue for Medicare over five years, was part of a broader package that is intended to rein in Medicare costs while advancing the Republican vision of a larger private role in the health care system.

Representative Pete Stark of California, chairman of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, said it was hypocritical of Mr. Bush to try to increase some premiums while not proposing any cuts in “overpayments to private insurance companies” that manage care for nearly nine million beneficiaries.

Bush Proposes Linking the Medicare Drug Premium to Beneficiaries’ Income - New York Times