Debate Club

Should the Medicare Eligibility Age Be Raised?

As part of his counter-offer to President Obama's plan to avert the so call fiscal cliff, House Speaker John Bohener proposed raising the eligibility age of Medicare, the government health insurance program for the elderly, from 65 to 67. Entitlement programs make up an increasing part of federal spending, and with the baby boomer population entering retirement, it stands grow even larger. Though many agree that entitlement reform is a necessary part of a budget deal, there is disagreement on how exactly to overhaul Medicare and other programs.

Proponents of raising the Medicare age point out that the eligibility age has not changed since the program was established in 1965, even thought the average American life span has grown. Raising the age limit would cut $148 billion from the program's cost in the next decade, they say.

Opponents argue that whatever raising the age will save the government, it will cost the American people much more. The 65-to-67 age group would be shifted from the Medicare risk pool, where they are youngest and thus the least costly to insure, to the private insurance risk pool, where they would be the oldest and would raise premiums. Younger Americans would end up having to absorb the cost, which opponents say would be double the amount of money the government saved.

Should the Medicare eligibility age be raised? Here is the Debate Club's take:

The Arguments

About Debate Club

A meeting of the sharpest minds on the day's most important topics, Debate Club brings in the best arguments and lets readers decide which is the most persuasive. Read the arguments, then vote. And be sure to check back often to see who has gotten the most support—and also to see what's being discussed now in the Debate Club.

Have ideas about what the Club should be debating? E-mail it to dclub@usnews.com.

You can also join the debate on Facebook or follow Debate Club on Twitter.

Advertisement
Cartoons
Thomas Jefferson Street Blog
Do You Believe NSA Leaker Edward Snowden or President Obama?

Should we take the word of the NSA leaker or Obama?

Obama, Boehner and the GOP Crisis of Leadership

It’s tough for anyone to lead when some in the GOP seem committed to their own destruction.

Obamacare Opponents Have to Keep Pushing Repeal

The way to repeal Obamacare is to hasten its ugly results.

Can Obama's Berlin Speech Match John F. Kennedy's and Ronald Reagan's?

The two famous Berlin speeches almost never were.

Reform Conservatives Need to Tackle Unemployment and Jobs

"Reform conservatives" are doing good work, but need to think about the ills of long-term unemployment.

If Background Checks are Good Enough for Guns, They're Good Enough for Jobs

Employers need to be able to consider all factors before making a hire.

NSA Leaker Edward Snowden Is Neither a Whistle-Blower Nor a Civil Disobeyer

Resisters who break a law must accept that they may be arrested and have a duty to submit to punishment.

Obama Should Bring Small Business Owners on His Trip to Africa

This country needs a national reality show.

Advertisement