Republican congressional leaders called for bipartisan solutions on Thursday following the release the latest Medicare and Social Security trustees report that concluded that the programs would be insolvent within 20 years.
Medicare’s hospital insurance trust fund will run dry by 2028 — two years earlier than previously anticipated — and Social Security will run out of reserves in 2034, paying only about three-quarters of scheduled benefits after that, according to the trustees report.
U.S. Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI), the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Joe Pitts (R-PA), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, said that Medicare is currently on “a path to disaster.”
“It’s a problem we’ve been working to address in Congress, and this report reiterates many of our concerns about the longevity and ultimate sustainability of this program without further reform,” Upton and Pitts said in a joint statement. “(Thursday’s) report warns that Medicare could be insolvent as soon as 2022, after which there is no way for the program to pay its bills.”
The committee leaders said that they would continue to work toward bipartisan solutions like the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act, H.R. 2, the Protecting Seniors’ Access to Medicare Act, H.R. 1190, and the 21st Century Cures Act, H.R. 6, which were all advanced by the committee.
The House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, meanwhile, held a hearing on Wednesday to examine the report.
U.S. Rep. Sam Johnson (R-TX), the chairman of the subcommittee, said that the longer legislators wait to address Social Security’s solvency challenges, the harder it will be.
U.S Rep. Tom Price (R-SC) argued that President Barack Obama has no real plan to solve the problem.
“We understand what is at stake, and that is why we have consistently included positive solutions in our budget resolutions that would provide seniors with more choices when it comes to Medicare while protecting and preserving the program,” Price said. “Additionally, we encourage Congress and the president to begin the process of improving Social Security so we can ensure its long-term solvency. Through the committee’s Restoring the Trust for All Generations initiative we are further raising awareness about the fiscal and policy challenges inherent in these programs, and the unique impact they have on Americans in every stage of life.”
U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX), the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, forecasted problems down the road if inaction continues.
“If the Obama Administration continues its irresponsible inaction, Social Security and Medicare will fail to serve our children and grandchildren in the future,” Brady said. “The administration has a responsibility to work with us on serious solutions that preserve and strengthen these programs.”
U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) added that Social Security and Medicare are two of the government’s most successful programs in history and need to be preserved for future generations.
“Every year, the fundamental programs that protect our seniors slide closer to insolvency,” Buchanan said. “Fixing these programs should be a top priority and this report shows why action is needed sooner rather than later.”