pelley: good evening. just when you thought washington was hopelessly deadlocked, a conservative republican and a liberal democrat have net the middle with a proposal to save medicare. 49 million americans are on the government health plan, but it can t survive in its current state. it s projected that medicare will be bankrupt in 12 years. today s proposal would be a major change and we asked congressional correspondent nancy cordes to sort it out for us. nancy? reporter: scott, it s something we haven t seen in quite some time: an influential republican and a democrat coming together on an issue divide the two sides like almost nothing else medicare. this is the path to prosperity. reporter: the plan republicans introduced eight months ago went over like a led balloon with democrats and many seniors. so today, house budget chair paul ryan teamed up with a democrat, oregon senator ron wyden, to introduce a new cost- cutting plan for medicare. we want to show that
how would this plan save money? it would save money because it would give seniors choices. it would give choice in competition. reporter: traditional medicare was not a choice in the proposal ryan unveiled in april. back then, ryan envisioned ending medicare and giving seniors subsidies to buy private insurance. but the congressional budget office estimated ryan s formula would cost the average senior $6,400 more in 2022 than they pay today. your original plan was unpopular with voters, is this an attempt. i think it wasn t at all. this is just adding an option to the plan that we already put out. reporter: but the white house panned this new proposal, arguing that insurance companies would scoop up healthy seniors leaving the sick to traditional medicare and driving costs for that program way up, scott. pelley: nancy, what does it mean that paul ryan and ron wyden sponsored this? reporter: well, ryan is quite powerful, he s the chair of the house budget committee
with scott pelley. pelley: good evening. just when you thought washington was hopelessly deadlocked, a conservative republican and a liberal democrat have net the middle with a proposal to save medicare. 49 million americans are on the government health plan, but it can t survive in its current state. it s projected that medicare will be bankrupt in 12 years. today s proposal would be a major change and we asked congressional correspondent nabsy cordes to sort it out for us. nancy? reporter: scott it s something we haven t seen in quite some time: an influential republican and a democrat coming together on an issue divide the two sides like almost nothing else medicare. this is the path to prosperity. reporter: the plan republicans introduced eight months ago went over like a led balloon with democrats and many seniors. so today house budget chair paul ryan teamed up with a democrat, oregon senator ron wyden, to introduce a new cost-cutting plan for medicare. we wa
recounting of what happened when his son was killed in afghanistan in 2010. i know it s the story that has occupied my time, attention, and emotions this week, hugh. courtney, were you surprised, as i was, when the general asked the assembled press corp how many of you know gold star families, and i think one or two people raised their hands. he was stunned by that. he was stunned by the controversy. i was surprised so many people know so few gold star families. i m sure you do at the pentagon. what was your reaction to that? i know people who i knew and worked with in the military who were killed. and i think of one megan mcclung. i got to know her father who passed away a few years ago as well. you know, it s a different press