Big changes in Medicare appear to be inevitable

Obama calls for slowing growth of Medicaid, Medicare to reduce deficit Apr 13
By Jack Torry, Washington Bureau
12:53 AM Sunday, April 24, 2011
WASHINGTON — No matter which sides prevails in the intensely ideological and partisan debate in Washington over the mushrooming costs of Medicare, one thing is certain: The program as we know it is in for big changes.
“Everybody admits doing nothing is not an option,’’ said Michael Tanner, an analyst at the CATO Institute in Washington.

In particular, they contend that health costs continue to rise because of the increase of such diseases as diabetes, caused in large part by preventable conditions such as obesity. They say that until hospitals and physicians become more efficient in preventing and treating the chronically ill, U.S. health care costs will continue to soar. read more