AARP Praises Bipartisan Bill Extending Unemployment Insurance, Blocking Harmful New Medicaid Rules, USA

Main Category: Medicare / Medicaid / SCHIP
Article Date: 20 Jun 2008 - 4:00 PST

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Elaine Ryan, AARP's Vice President for Government Relations, issued the following statement on the bipartisan support to include and pass enhanced unemployment insurance benefits and block harmful Medicaid measures in a supplemental funding bill.

"Congressional leaders deserve credit for working across the aisle to develop a bipartisan compromise. Their decision to extend unemployment insurance for workers across the country and block a series of harmful new Medicaid rules shows that they understand the severity of the economic pressure that has millions of Americans struggling to make ends meet.

"The U.S. economy has lost jobs for the last five months, and in May the nation's unemployment rate showed the largest one-month leap in 22 years. Extending federal unemployment insurance benefits helps those workers who are direct casualties of the economic crisis, including mid-life and older workers who generally have a harder time finding work after losing employment.

"At a time when most Americans, as well as state programs, are struggling with skyrocketing health care costs, the Medicaid moratorium suspends regulations that would shift costs for legitimate and necessary services to states and individuals who cannot afford to pay for them. One of these regulations, on case management, would impede efforts to get people out of nursing homes and into home and community-based services that most of us prefer and that are often more cost effective. Another would limit rehabilitation services that keep people with health problems from getting worse.

"The final moratorium provides time to rewrite these harmful Medicaid regulations so that they can adequately address their intended focus on preventing fraud, waste, and abuse - without shifting costs to states and denying care to some of our nation's most vulnerable people."

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 33 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP's 39 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.

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