Medicare Resource Center™

HOUSE|SENATE

112th congress, vote #277; House Concurrent Resolution #34

Ryan Budget Bill 2011

Official Title: Establishing the budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2012 and setting forth appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2013 through 2021.

HConRes 34: Ryan budget bill
Passed by House April 15, 2011
Rejected by Senate May 24/25, 2011

Medicare was at the center of a dramatic confrontation between Democrats and Republicans in Congress as House Republicans attempted to make major changes to Medicare and Medicaid (the public health plan for the poor). Opponents of Rep. Paul D. Ryan's budget plan argue it would essentially destroy Medicare.

The bill passed the House, but was rejected in the Democrat-controlled Senate.

Ryan argued the federal deficits required a radical change in how money is spent in Washington, and would have reduced spending by $5.8 trillion over a decade.

The proposal would have fundamentally changed Medicare so that older Americans would join private health plans subsidized by the government, rather than getting their coverage directly from the government program.

Ryan said this was necessary to keep the program solvent in the future, arguing that politics has kept Congress from facing Medicare's financial problems. "We have too many people worried about the next election and not worried about the next generation," he said in a New York Times article.

The Senate turned down the bill with an easy margin. Sen. Harry Reid was quoted in Politico as saying:

"The promise of Medicare is this: if you work hard, America will make sure you are protected in your golden years. The Republican budget would break this promise. It would make life significantly more difficult and painful for America's seniors. It's as simple and serious as that."

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