Issue Position: Seniors

Issue Position

The Affordable Care Act -- Congressman Bishop supported legislation that provides Medicare beneficiaries free preventive care services such as cancer screenings, bone mass measurements, cardiovascular diseases screenings, and diabetes testing. That same legislation also closes the Medicare Part D coverage gap, also known as the "doughnut hole" so that seniors pay less for prescription drugs. In 2011, seniors saved $2.1 billion on prescriptions drugs due to the legislation Congressman Bishop supported. Standing Against Republican Plans to Gut Medicare -- Congressman Bishop voted against the Republican Budget that changes Medicare into a voucher system and requires seniors to pay up to pay more for their health care. In fact, under that budget seniors would pay two-thirds of their health care expenses. That same budget also forces seniors to pay more for their medications by re-opening Medicare Part D coverage gap, also known as the "doughnut hole" and takes away free preventive care services available to seniors, such as cancer screenings. Waste, Fraud, and Abuse -- Congressman Bishop has also supported efforts to strengthen Medicare by reducing waste, fraud, and abuse so that taxpayer dollars go towards providing seniors the health care services they need and deserve rather than to people looking to scam the federal government. In fact, the efforts supported by Congressman Bishop recovered 4.1 billion in Fiscal Year 2011. Supporting Doctors -- For too long, Medicare doctors have faced looming payment cuts due to a flawed formula known as the Sustainable Growth Rate. These possible cuts threaten the ability of seniors to access the doctor of their choice and force doctors to reconsider their participation in Medicare. Congressman Bishop has supported and continues to support a permanent solution so that Medicare doctors receive the certainty they need to continue providing the excellent care they have been providing Medicare beneficiaries. Protecting and Preserving Social Security -- Congressman Bishop opposes Republican plans to privatize Social Security. In 2008, retirees would have seen the value of their Social Security benefits plummet as the recession deepened. Instead of privatization, Congressman Bishop supports efforts to strengthen Social Security and ensure its solvency for current and future retirees. COLA-- When seniors faced two consecutive years without a cost-of-living adjustment in their Social Security benefits, Congressman Bishop supported legislation to change the index used to calculate COLAs that better reflects seniors' buying habits. In addition, he also voted for legislation that would have given a $250 check to Social Security recipients in lieu of a COLA for 2011. Social Security is a fundamental part of seniors' retirement income and Congressman Bishop supports efforts to preserve Social Security.

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