Candidates:

Gordon Smith, Republican

Jeff Merkley, Democrat

Questions:

Priorities  Social Security  Enhancing Retirement Security  Making Health Care More Affordable  Long-Term Care 

The candidate was asked to check either the support or oppose boxes.

QUESTION:

What will be your top domestic issue priorities if elected? How will you work to break the gridlock to get things done on these issues? Please list your top three domestic priorities:

AARP RESPONSE:

AARP’s position: Millions of Americans worry about their health and long-term financial security. They fear the future will not be as prosperous for their children and grandchildren. They face competing demands: affording health care, saving for retirement, sending children to college and supporting aging parents. At the same time, soaring health care costs constrain businesses’ ability to grow and compete. Our elected leaders in Washington have become increasingly unable to solve major issues because of partisan gridlock. Americans want results from our elected leaders, not promises without action. It’s time for individuals, businesses, non-profit organizations, and government to come together to find solutions. AARP believes that providing quality, affordable health care and improving lifelong financial security for all Americans should be Washington’s top domestic priorities.

Gordon Smith (Republican) RESPONSE:

The bitter partisanship of Washington, DC is holding back real reforms to help the economy, to grow Oregon companies and to lower the cost of health care. I will continue to lead by example, working with Democrats like Ron Wyden and Maria Cantwell, to produce results for Oregon and the region. My top health care priority is to ensure all Americans have access to affordable, high quality health care, and ensure Medicare, Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) remain strong for our seniors, children and persons with disabilities.

Jeff Merkley (Democrat) RESPONSE:

My top three domestic priorities will be: 1. Solving the health care crises in America by enacting affordable, universal health care coverage for every man, woman, and child. 2. Aggressively transforming the nation's energy policy to take on climate change, end our dependence on foreign oil, and create family wage jobs across America. 3. Restoring fiscal responsibility to Washington D.C. to protect social security and Medicare from privatization. We can do this by ending the Bush tax give-a-ways to the most powerful special interests and wealthiest Americans and bringing an immediate end to the fiscally disastrous war in Iraq.

QUESTION:

Will you support or oppose a balanced Social Security plan to continue the program’s guaranteed benefits for future generations? Will you support or oppose diverting Social Security payroll taxes to fund individual retirement accounts?

AARP RESPONSE:

Social Security has provided peace of mind for Americans for over 70 years. The program’s guaranteed, inflation adjusted benefit protects families when a worker retires, becomes disabled or dies. We all benefit from the shared responsibility of providing for today’s beneficiaries, with the knowledge that future generations will also share the responsibility for us. AARP believes that a bipartisan plan that balances additional contributions from higher income workers with modest adjustments in future benefits can maintain Social Security’s guaranteed benefits for future generations. AARP supports individual retirement accounts in addition to current guaranteed Social Security benefits, but believes diverting Social Security taxes from the Trust Fund to fund individual retirement accounts instead of Social Security would weaken the program and create a mountain of new federal debt.

Gordon Smith (Republican) RESPONSE:

There is a solution to keep Social Security solvent – and it won’t come from the Republican Party or the Democratic Party, it will come from both. Only when we put partisan differences aside will we be able to solve the problems facing Social Security. And most important, Congress should do no harm to Social Security’s guaranteed benefits for future generations.

Jeff Merkley (Democrat) RESPONSE:

The candidate chose not to response by the deadline.

QUESTION:

What options do you support to make saving for retirement easier for American families? Do you support or oppose guaranteeing employees’ access to automatic payroll deductions in the workplace to fund an IRA? Do you support or oppose creating retirement accounts in addition to Social Security?

AARP RESPONSE:

Lifetime financial security is a cornerstone of the American dream, yet this dream is being threatened by the phasing out of many traditional pension plans, and an economic environment where people find it difficult to save. Social Security was never intended to be a worker’s only source of retirement income. AARP supports creating new retirement savings options and expanding existing supplemental retirement accounts that enable workers to accumulate retirement savings in addition to Social Security’s guaranteed benefits. Half of all workers have no organized way to save for retirement such as pensions or 401(k) plans. AARP supports guaranteeing workers access to automatic payroll deductions to an IRA (Individual Retirement Account) in the workplace if their employers do not already provide them a pension or 401(k) plan.

Gordon Smith (Republican) RESPONSE:

Saving for retirement should be simple, safe and profitable. That is why I believe in reforms that allow for pre-tax savings and accounts that help every worker save. To help people build a bigger nest egg, I wrote the Automatic IRA Act with Senator Bingaman to give employees access to automatic payroll deductions that will help grow their retirement savings. I have also worked with a bipartisan group of Senators to narrow the retirement income gap between men and women. We have proposed requiring employers to allow long-term, part-time employees to make contributions to their 401(k) plans to help female workers, who are more likely to work part-time, better prepare for retirement.

Jeff Merkley (Democrat) RESPONSE:

The candidate chose not to response by the deadline.

QUESTION:

What policies would you support to make health care and health insurance more affordable and accessible for everyone? What policies would you support to make Medicare more affordable?

AARP RESPONSE:

We believe affordable, quality health care is a fundamental right for all Americans. Availability of coverage, rising premiums and the prospect of losing coverage altogether have become constant concerns for too many families, including older Americans, because Medicare cost sharing continues to increase as well. Making health care affordable is a shared responsibility among government, business, health care providers and individuals. We need to improve quality, eliminate waste, establish more efficient systems of care, and take individual responsibility to live healthier lives. AARP believes existing programs, both public and private, should be strengthened with incentives and subsidies to encourage greater individual and employer participation. Improving care for chronic diseases like diabetes and expanding preventive care and greater use of research on health outcomes will help reduce costs and improve overall health.

Gordon Smith (Republican) RESPONSE:

Nobody should have to choose between paying the mortgage and paying for life-sustaining health care. That is why Senator Wyden and I have proposed a pilot program that would allow the state of Oregon to provide subsidized health insurance to individuals and create a new program to offer catastrophic coverage to people with overwhelming health care bills. To reduce the number of uninsured Americans, I want to reform the rules so small businesses have access to more affordable and higher quality health care for their employees – something unavailable to over sixty percent of America’s uninsured because they work for a small firm. I am also advocating for easier enrollment and clearer eligibility requirements for Medicare’s low income subsidy program.

Jeff Merkley (Democrat) RESPONSE:

The candidate chose not to response by the deadline.

QUESTION:

How would you shift long-term care services and financing so that people can afford to stay in their homes and communities as long as appropriate?

AARP RESPONSE:

At some point, most Americans will need supportive services to help with daily activities (such as dressing or bathing). The vast majority strongly prefer receiving care in their homes and communities rather than in more costly nursing homes or other institutions. However, government programs for long-term care are often geared toward institutions, making home and community-based care much harder to receive. The caregiving burden—both physical and economic— is often overwhelming for millions of families. AARP supports shifting long-term care programs to more home and community services to help people stay in their homes and communities as long as appropriate. Consumers should have more choices and improved quality of care across all settings, and the caregiving burden on millions of families should be eased.

Gordon Smith (Republican) RESPONSE:

I brought an Oregon idea called Money Follows the Person to the nation’s Capitol and with Senator Harkin made it a new law. Now states are encouraged to work with families to help loved ones remain at home and receive care instead of living in a nursing home. I have also have proposed the Long-Term Care Trust Account Act to spur younger Americans to save tax free for their long-term care needs, and to reward them for contributing to an account intended for their parents’ long term care needs. I also support programs like Meals on Wheels, congregate meal sites, respite care and family caregiver support programs which help seniors stay at home.

Jeff Merkley (Democrat) RESPONSE:

The candidate chose not to response by the deadline.