Sen. John Barrasso mistakenly claimed that "57 percent of doctors don’t want new Medicare patients," which isn’t true. His own spokeswoman admits he got it wrong.
National surveys have put the number who don’t take new Medicare patients as low as 14 percent, and a big American Medical Association survey last year showed only 17 percent of all physicians said they were "restricting" Medicare patients (either taking none, or just some).
The Wyoming senator — who is also a physician —
Issues: medicare
Rubio Inconsistent on Medicare
Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida offered a wildly inconsistent view of what constitutes a "cut" from Medicare. Rubio claimed that Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget plan "doesn’t cut Medicare" but that the federal health care law does.
Actually, Ryan’s plan leaves in place many of the Medicare "cuts" in the health care law. And over the long-term, Ryan’s plan would "cut" or "save" (we’ll leave the word choice to our readers) even more by requiring future beneficiaries to pay a higher percentage of health care costs.
Obama Misrepresents Ryan Plan
President Barack Obama has been hammering away at Rep. Paul Ryan’s Medicare proposal, misrepresenting what it would mean for seniors.
Since his deficit speech April 13, Obama has continued to claim that the Republican plan would throw Medicare beneficiaries to the open insurance market. But, as we said last week, the plan would create a new Medicare exchange, with rules for participating insurance companies.
Obama, April 20, Facebook town hall: And if the health insurance companies don’t sell [retirees] a policy that covers your illnesses,
Ryan’s Muddy Medicare Claims
Rep. Paul Ryan’s claim that Medicare will be "bankrupt in nine years" goes too far. The trust fund that primarily supports one part of Medicare is projected to be exhausted come 2020, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees said it might not actually happen until 2029. That still doesn’t mean the system will be "bankrupt," though.
The House Budget Committee chairman was making the case for his 2012 budget proposal,
FactChecking Obama’s Budget Speech
President Barack Obama misrepresented the House Republicans’ budget plan at times and exaggerated its impact on U.S. residents during an April 13 speech on deficit reduction. Obama claimed …
Premium Nonsense On Medicare
Q: Will the new health care law raise Medicare’s basic monthly premium to $247 in 2014, as a viral message claims?
A: No, Medicare officials project the basic premium will be less than half that. But the law will eventually cause 14 percent of seniors with incomes over $85,000 a year ($170,000 for couples) to pay higher “income-related” premiums, up from 5 percent currently.
Santorum Wrong on Abortion, Birth Facts
Rick Santorum incorrectly stated that “one in three pregnancies end in abortion” in the United States. It’s actually fewer than one in four.
Santorum appeared on a New Hampshire radio talk show, blaming abortions for “causing Social Security and Medicare to be underfunded.” But he not only misstated the abortion statistic, he also got it wrong when he said that “our birthrate is now below replacement rate for the first time in our history.” The total fertility rate,
DCCC’s Deceptive Drive
Democrats are accusing Republicans of "pushing to cut seniors' benefits," when no cuts have been proposed for those currently on Social Security or Medicare.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee began making automated and live phone calls to residents on March 22, claiming that 10 GOP House members are "part of a majority of the Republicans in Washington pushing to cut seniors’ benefits in Social Security and Medicare." It is the next phase of the committee's "Drive to 25"
DCCC, Crossroads Usher in 2012 Campaign
Less than a month after the new Congress convened, House Democrats and a conservative outside group traded accusations (some bogus, some not) in the first ads of the 2012 campaign. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee started …
Sunday Replay
The first set of Sunday shows since the midterm elections featured a number of Republicans talking about how they’ll exercise their increased power. We’d just like to set the facts straight — on the budget, the health care law, taxes and other subjects. Democrats, too, weren’t immune from making a misleading statement or two.
Taxes and Revenues: Up and Up
GOP Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana made a wildly false supply-side tax claim on ABC’s "This Week"