Medicare is an enormous program, a mind-bogglingly humongous program. Whenever anybody talks about cutting Medicare, they start with the idea, "cut the fraud." That's a great idea, and sometimes there are savings there, but that is not really where you find the fat. Any program that pumps billions of dollars into the economy is going to get nibbled at the edges by sharks. The real question is, "where is the fat in the legitimate system?"
Here are a few questions to start with. The answers are below the jump, and they might surprise you:
1. What was the single biggest cost to Medicare for supplies and non-physician services in 2009?
2. How much do you get in increased life span for a drug that costs $100,000 per year, and that Medicare paid $772,359,065 for in 2009?
3. How much did Medicare pay for portable oxygen in 2009?
4. Medicare paid over $800 million dollars for a single drug in 2009. What was it, and what does it treat? Also, is there a cheaper therapeutic equivalent?
5. You've seen those commercials for power wheelchairs and scooters on TV. How much do you think Medicare paid for them in 2009?
6. What do you think the most expensive non-office visit outpatient service was in 2009?
