Projections of Medicare's future debt obligations are staggering.Even without any prescription drug benefits, current participantswill be owed $13 trillion. New generations, whose taxes should bepaying off current obligations, will impose another $25 trillion indebt to the system. Reformers should consider adopting features ofthe Federal Employees Health Benefit Program (FEHBP), whichemphasizes consumer choice and competition among health plans andhas successfully controlled costs for decades.
Whatever the outcome of the current House-Senate conference onMedicare legislation, taxpayers can depend on one thing: The costprojections of the Medicare drug entitlement keep rising.