Commentary: Trump administration finds a new way to screw Medicare members hiking their drug bills

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Set us as preferred All policy wonks worth their salt know there are a few ways to kill a government program.One is for Congress to abolish it.

If the lawmakers aren’t so inclined, a hostile administration can get its way by starving the program of resources or making it harder for people to sign up or stay enrolled.That’s been the Trump White House’s approach to Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare — make them more expensive to use and saddle the beneficiaries with more paperwork and administrative obstacles.The administration has just piled another lead weight on Americans already struggling to manage their increased expenses because of Trump’s Iran war and tariffs: On July 29, Medicare chief Mehmet Oz announced that the government is canceling a subsidy program that kept premiums for the Medicare prescription drug benefit — known as Part D — under control.

These are significant cost-shifting burdens for seniors.It’s unfortunate that Dr.

Oz and his colleagues can’t appreciate what it means for someone living mostly on Social Security.— Max Richtman, National Committee to Preserve Social Security and MedicareThe subsidies were due to continue at least through the end of next year; instead, they will end Dec.31.This could increase Part D premiums substantially for many of the 23 million Americans enrolled in Part D — even doubling the monthly cost for 11 million or more.Commentary on economics and more from a Pulitzer Prize winner.

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