At this event, Paul Spitalnic, Medicare’s acting chief actuary, will explain the results of this year’s Medicare trustees report. A panel of experts will then discuss how developments in the health sector will affect Medicare’s long-term future.

Medicare has sharply changed the way it pays for diagnostic tests, cutting payment rates and curtailing coverage for some new tests altogether.

Joseph Antos' testimony before the House Committee on Ways and Means' Subcommittee on Health on "The President’s and Other Bipartisan Proposals to Reform Medicare."

Today, the American Enterprise Institute releases three major research papers on the future of Medicare. This project, developed with the support of the Robert Wood Johnson foundation, lays out a clear plan for comprehensive Medicare reform.

Competitive bidding, as a vehicle for determining prices for Medicare health plans, holds the promise of substantial cost savings while protecting the health care needs of beneficiaries, regardless of the political question of determining the size of the entitlement.

Given Medicare’s influence over all health costs, fixing the program should top the list of reform priorities. Real improvement will almost certainly require a more fundamental change than has been enacted to date: a market-based reform that corrects the flawed incentives that drive unnecessary spending in the current program.

Traditional Medicare’s uncapped subsidy and reliance on fee-for-service payment promotes more spending on health services, not better spending. However, market competition can reduce unnecessary spending and still allow beneficiaries to select more expensive plans if they choose.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation asked scholars at the American Enterprise Institute to consider various approaches to reforming this "800-pound gorilla of American health care." The resulting series, “Preserving Medicare for future generations: market based approaches to reform,” includes three papers, each of which addresses a key question in Medicare reform.