AARP Presses Budget Leaders on Health Reform Goals

Source: AARP Press Center | 2009-04-21

April 21, 2009

Contact: AARP Media Relations, 202-434-2560, media@aarp.org

WASHINGTON—As the House and Senate begin work on a final budget resolution, AARP CEO Barry Rand called on the leaders of the budget committees to include the Association’s legislative priorities. Excerpts from Rand’s letter to Senate Budget Chairman Kent Conrad (ND), Ranking Member Judd Gregg (NH), House Budget Chairman John Spratt (SC) and Ranking Member Paul Ryan (WI) follow:

“…[O]n behalf of our 40 million members, AARP urges the House and Senate conferees to include in the final budget agreement reserve funds and allocations that will advance health care reform, bolster retirement security, and promote livable communities.”

“AARP agrees with both the President and congressional leaders that it is critical to enact health care reform this year, and to ensure that reforms are paid for in the long run. Therefore, we support the inclusion of a deficit-neutral health care reserve fund to advance enactment of health care reform as soon as possible…. We urge that the reserve fund included in the final budget resolution allow health care legislation to meet “pay as you go” requirements in the final year of the rule’s application, to allow some time for savings to be realized.”

“…[U]sing the reconciliation process for health care reform may present some serious challenges…. [We] strongly urge all parties to demonstrate real progress toward achieving this goal through regular order….”

“AARP also supports the inclusion of a current policy reserve fund to reform the Medicare physician payment system…. We urge Congress to enact these physician payment reforms swiftly, while also protecting the programs that are most important to our members.”

“…Providing all workers with a chance to supplement their Social Security income is a cornerstone of AARP’s retirement security agenda. We appreciate that both the House and Senate budget resolutions assume enough discretionary funding to accommodate the increase in SSA funding, and that both budgets include a reserve fund that can accommodate improvements in retirement savings policies.”

“…AARP shares a commitment to providing increased funding for transportation not only to support substantial improvement in our nation’s transportation infrastructure, but to permit broad restructuring of our nation’s transportation priorities. AARP is working to enable older adults to live independently…and transportation is critical to maintaining the community connections that make that possible.”

“We are concerned that the non-defense discretionary allocations in both the Senate and House resolutions are below the President’s request…. Failure to provide for the higher level of non-defense discretionary spending will greatly handicap the ability of the Appropriations Committees to sustain their efforts to restore funding levels for many senior, disabled and lower income programs….”

“We appreciate the challenge before the conferees, and commend your efforts to reset the course of many critical policies through this budget.”

To request a complete copy of AARP’s letter to the budget committees, please contact AARP Media Relations at the number above. For more information about AARP’s health reform campaign, please visit HealthActionNow.org.

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with over 34.5 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP's 40 million members and Americans 50+; AARP Segunda Juventud, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.