Money may make the world go around, but all the money in the world can't turn back the clock. As aging Americans celebrate life on earth with each birthday that comes their way, most gratefully count their blessings and wish for another year of good health when they blow out the candles.
Lifestyles and consumer behavior in America today are geared towards longevity and increasing one's chances for enjoying life to its fullest well into retirement. Consider the emphasis placed upon physical fitness, good nutrition and vitamin supplements for the 50-plus crowd by the news media, publishing world and well-financed advertisers.
Modern medicine, advanced technology and pharmaceutical breakthroughs are re-shaping consumer expectations for health care and the corresponding demands at doctor's offices, pharmacies and hospitals across the country. These days comparing notes on blood and cholesterol levels with one's peers is as commonplace as talking about the weather.
In contrast to this contemporary health care culture among retirees and their aging sons and daughters, Medicare -- the taxpayer-financed federal government health program that serves the disabled and older Americans -- lags behind the advances in modern medicine and falls short of being the comprehensive insurer that current and future beneficiaries have come to expect.
Today's health care delivery system puts greater emphasis on early detection and patient education, including preventive care, overall health maintenance and prescription drug treatments. This approach leads to shorter hospital stays but more visits to the pharmacy. Yet in the Medicare program, a glaring shortfall exists from the 20th century Medicare we have inherited in the new century: it lacks a prescription drug benefit and does not provide the real insurance protection that so many Americans 65 and under already enjoy.
From countless visits, letters and phone calls from Iowans over my 20 years in the U.S. Senate, it is obvious to me how important Medicare is to the lives of hundreds of thousands of my constituents. In fairness to current beneficiaries and to those who someday will have their health care choices and medical decisions influenced by what Medicare pays for, I am working in Washington to keep in place the guarantee the federal government made to seniors more than 35 years ago and to improve what the Medicare program has to offer.
Financed primarily through payroll taxes, the Medicare entitlement program promises each and every American age 65 and older access to health care. And that's what workers and retirees have come to expect: a rock-solid guarantee that Medicare will be there when they need it.
Serving in the Senate is a privilege I take seriously. Iowans want less partisanship and more results. I couldn't agree more. As the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, which bears legislative jurisdiction over Medicare policy, I am pressing forward to enact Medicare modernizations that will strengthen, simplify and improve the system. Efforts to provide seniors with real insurance protection for catastrophic illness, the best, most effective medical treatments available in the marketplace, and a meaningful prescription drug benefit must stick to those three defining principles.
Strengthening the system will ensure Medicare is on solid financial footing to serve every 21st century retiree without saddling future generations with excessive taxes. Beyond that, Medicare consumers crave simplicity. For years, patients and providers have put up with a perplexing bureaucracy overrun by a complex set of rules and regulations. Many say they can't make heads or tail out of a Medicare billing statement and throw up their hands in despair when they are unable to get necessary information on Medicare options or services that are covered. The last thing patients and their caregivers need when fighting a debilitating illness or disease is red tape and confusing paperwork.
Considering that access to affordable health care and prescription medicines are essentially a daily concern held by so many older Americans, it is critical for Congress to act swiftly on measures to strengthen, simplify and improve Medicare. I am working hard to craft legislation that can be signed into law this year, and I can guarantee that a prescription drug benefit will be included in any Medicare legislation passed by this Congress.
From my leadership position as the top Republican on the Finance Committee, I am committed to making improvements to Medicare for all Americans. And I'm also continuing my crusade to fix the regional payment disparities that unfairly treat Iowans -- even though they pay the same payroll taxes and Medicare premiums as all other Americans. I won't rest until the reimbursement system is made more equitable and providers delivering high quality medicine are recognized for their hard work and commitment to the Medicare population.
Medicare needs a legislative check-up to improve the health care delivery system for older Americans in the 21st century. Finding the cure will require a strong dose of non-partisan treatments that puts public policy over political gain. If partisanship prevails, politicians ought to be prepared to swallow a bitter pill in the next election when unsatisfied voters give them a taste of their own medicine at the polls.