1483 Healthy Cut

One of the big items in Paul Ryan's new deficit reduction plan, that will supposedly cut $6 trillion, is a revamping of Medicare. Congrats to him for taking on the monster, but I think he may get some resistance to his ideas. And from quarters he may not expect.
Some of the forgotten rigid backbones behind the Tea Party may be upset. And by rigid I mean ossified, swollen, and arthritic. The grey panther person. The oldster that was inflamed that Obamacare was, "messing with my Medicare."
Remember the outcry? The fear? Oldsters across the land were alarmed at the prospect of diminished benefits, managed care and yes, death panels.
Now, in a stunning betrayal, Tea Party darling Paul Ryan is messing with Medicare. His proposal is to stop it being a government program and give seniors $15000 vouchers to purchase private insurance.
Only one problem. He'd better check with the insurance companies first. Because they may not want the business. The key to insurance being profitable is having lots of people who don't make claims. Insurers don't want to issue flood insurance to people who live along rivers, or earthquake insurance in San Francisco.
Those folks may actually have to make claims.
That’s why insurers fought healthcare reform's elimination of the pre-existing condition. Well guess what? Old Age is the ultimate pre-existing condition. And it carries with it a host of ailments that insurance companies would much rather the government pay for.
Just like the government subsidizes disaster relief. If you've ever had to dicker with your insurance company about what medical expense they'll cover, you know what I mean.
Paul Ryan is at least ideologically consistent. Republicans love to privatize things. But don’t look now, his plan may just privatize the, um, death panels.
America, ya gotta love it.