Letters
The New York Times, July 3, 2011
I disagree with Daniel Callahan. I think that the economist Robert B. Reich expressed it best: “Medicare isn’t the problem. It is the solution.”
We do not have to reduce benefits or raise the age of eligibility to save Medicare. We need to expand and improve it so we have Medicare for all. This is what many other industrialized nations have done. They bring high-quality medical care to all their citizens at half the cost of what we spend.
It’s a no-brainer. Expanding the pool of beneficiaries to include everyone and financing it with progressive taxes is the way to “save” Medicare. There is already a bill in Congress, H.R. 676, that accomplishes this. We need to pass it.
ELIZABETH R. ROSENTHAL
Larchmont, N.Y., June 29, 2011
The writer is a dermatologist.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/03/opinion/sunday/l03dialogue.html?_r=1&pagewanted=1