Kerry: Seniors misled by Bush

MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Sen. John Kerry, stepping up his campaign to convince voters that President Bush is dishonest, told a group of seniors Tuesday that the White House attempted to conceal government statistics showing the elderly will soon pay a much bigger share of their Social Security income on Medicare expenses.

“Once again, this administration hides the truth from the American people,” Kerry said.

Aides say Tuesday’s message speaks to a larger point Kerry believes he has to make to win, which is that Bush has misled the public on issues from war to health costs. “You know how to tell the truth and see the truth and understand it and make a choice about it,” Kerry told the seniors.

Kerry’s attack here stemmed from the decision by the Bush administration to break from past practice, when it excluded from the 2004 report on Medicare information showing that a typical 65-year-old will spend 37 percent of Social Security income on Medicare co-payments, premiums and other related expenses in 2006, a sharp rise from previous estimates.

Since the GOP convention, Kerry has been talking about a pattern of deceit emerging on an issue dear to most seniors: First, the White House admitted it concealed the true cost of its Medicare bill – $534 billion vs. the $400 billion it told Congress before it was signed into law – and now it has become clear the law will cost seniors more than previously understood by some. The message seemed to resonate with the small group of seniors gathered at Tuesday’s events.

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service Administrator Mark McClellan said the reason seniors will see a much larger portion of their 2006 Social Security benefit going to Medicare is that the federal health program will provide broader coverage, most notably prescription drugs.

Next year, the average 65-year-old Medicare beneficiary will receive about $1,000 a month from Social Security and spend 20 percent on Medicare premiums and co-payments. The typical senior will spend an additional $240 a month out of pocket on medication and other services not covered by Medicare.

The formula shifts in 2006, when the new drug benefit is implemented, McClellan said. Medicare costs will consume more than 37 percent of a retiree’s Social Security benefit, according to projections by government actuaries. But “the actuary estimates the typical beneficiary will have out-of-pocket savings of $1,240,” he said.

For most seniors, McClellan said, the math should work out in their favor. Nevertheless, Democrats complained bitterly that the Bush administration was keeping controversial information from the powerful elderly voting bloc by redesigning the chart distributed this year.

Associated Press

Lillian Lonergan, 89, hugs Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry during a campaign stop Tuesday in Milwaukee, Wis.

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