Time for Change?
The Outlook for Medicare and Social Security

In late March, the trustees of Medicare and Social Security will issue their annual reports on the two programs. As in previous years, the reports will warn that both programs face long-term fiscal crises. The president is poised to overhaul Social Security. Would the current proposals ensure its solvency? Should Medicare be on the agenda as well?

The event will begin with an address by CMS Administrator Mark McClellan on the future of Medicare and prospects for reform. The chief actuaries of Medicare and Social Security will present the reports' major findings. Two panels of experts will respond to the projections and offer policy insights. Following those discussions, Mark Warshawsky of the Treasury Deparment will give an overview of the administration’s priorities for Medicare and Social Security reform.

About the Author

 

Joseph
Antos

  • Mr. Antos's research focuses on the economics of health policy—including Medicare and broader health system reform, health care financing, health insurance regulation, and the uninsured—and federal budget policy. He has written and spoken extensively on the Medicare drug benefit and has led a team of experienced independent actuaries and cost estimators in a study to evaluate various proposals to extend health coverage to the uninsured. His work on the country’s budget crisis includes a detailed plan to achieve fiscal stability and economic growth developed in conjunction with AEI colleagues.  


    Joseph Antos is also a commissioner of the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission and a health adviser to the Congressional Budget Office.  Before joining AEI, Mr. Antos was Assistant Director for Health and Human Resources at the Congressional Budget Office.




    Watch Mr. Antos in an interview with Bill Erwin of the Alliance for Health Reform on "Will Health Reform Reduce the Federal Deficit?"

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  • Phone: 202-862-5938
    Email: jantos@aei.org
  • Assistant Info

    Name: Catherine Griffin
    Phone: 2028625920
    Email: catherine.griffin@aei.org

 

Robert B.
Helms
  • Robert B. Helms has served as a member of the Medicaid Commission as well as assistant secretary for planning and evaluation and deputy assistant secretary for health policy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). An economist by training, he has written and lectured extensively on health policy and health economics, including the history of Medicare, the tax treatment of health insurance, and compared international health systems. He currently participates in the Health Policy Consensus Group, an informal task force that is developing consumer-driven health reforms. He is the author or editor of several AEI books on health policy, including Medicare in the Twenty-First Century: Seeking Fair and Efficient Reform and Competitive Strategies in the Pharmaceutical Industry.
  • Phone: 2028625877
    Email: rhelms@aei.org
  • Assistant Info

    Name: Catherine Griffin
    Phone: 2028625920
    Email: catherine.griffin@aei.org
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