Question 1

Under the 1965 Medicare law, payments to physicians were ____.

Accepted Answer

The 1965 Medicare law initially allowed for generous payments to physicians, which were made retrospectively and with relatively little oversight. This approach was based on the customary fees that physicians charged at the time, without stringent regulation or pre-set limits.

Question 2

Which statement regarding the future of Medicare is true?

Accepted Answer

Raising the Medicare eligibility age shifts costs from Medicare to individuals, employers, and state Medicaid programs, rather than controlling healthcare spending. Rising medical costs are a problem for both Medicare and private insurers.

Question 3

Medicare's story begins with the failed campaign for national health insurance during the first half of the 20th century. A common theme during that time was ____.

Accepted Answer

Opposition to national health insurance was often based on the belief that it was not in line with American values of individualism and self-reliance.

Question 4

The Medicare Modernization Act prohibited the government from negotiating prices with ____.

Accepted Answer

The Medicare Modernization Act prohibited the government from negotiating prices with pharmaceutical companies, which has been a controversial issue in healthcare policy.

Question 5

The Affordable Care Act had important implications for Medicare. Which statement is true?

Accepted Answer

The Affordable Care Act's Medicare-related provisions generated funds to help cover the uninsured. For example, the law reduced payments to Medicare Advantage plans and to some providers, and used those savings to help pay for coverage for the uninsured. It also began imposing fees and taxes on various industries, including the pharmaceutical and medical device industries, to help pay for the law's coverage expansions.

Question 6

By the close of the 1980s, Medicare had developed a new regulatory regime for paying providers in which ____.

Accepted Answer

Federal policymakers asserted power over medical providers by introducing the Prospective Payment System (PPS) in 1983, which established predetermined, fixed payment rates for services, reducing the autonomy of medical providers in setting fees and shifting towards a more regulated payment model.

Question 7

In 1989, Congress enacted the Medicare Fee Schedule for physicians based on ____.

Accepted Answer

The Medicare Fee Schedule for physicians was enacted based on the resource-based relative value scale, which assigned values to medical procedures based on the resources required to perform them.

Question 8

What happened in 1994 that affected the politics of Medicare?

Accepted Answer

In 1994, the Republican Party won majorities in both the House and Senate, which shifted the political landscape of Medicare as the party's views on healthcare differed from those of the Democrats. This led to debates and changes in Medicare policies.

Question 9

In 2003, a near-decade of intensive efforts to move beneficiaries out of traditional Medicare had led to ____.

Accepted Answer

The sentence states that "a near-decade of intensive efforts to move beneficiaries out of traditional Medicare had led to 13% of beneficiaries enrolled in private plans." This means that choice A is the correct answer. Choices B, C, and D are not supported by the information provided.

Question 10

Which statement regarding the 1965 Medicare legislation is true?

Accepted Answer

Medicare's financial performance has indeed been more volatile than that of Social Security, largely due to the unpredictable nature of healthcare costs compared to the relatively stable demographic factors affecting Social Security.

Question 11

Medicare's architects created a tension between Medicare's short-term goals and its long-term aspirations. What were the long-term aspirations?

Accepted Answer

Medicare's long-term aspirations were to expand into national health insurance, which would cover everyone in the United States. However, this goal has yet to be fully achieved.

Question 12

Which statement is true regarding Congressman Paul Ryan's Medicare restructuring plan?

Accepted Answer

Congressman Paul Ryan's Medicare restructuring plan would shift costs from the federal government to Medicare beneficiaries. This is done by providing beneficiaries with subsidies to purchase private insurance instead of receiving traditional Medicare benefits, which would increase out-of-pocket costs for many seniors.

Question 13

The formula for reimbursement under the Medicare Prospective Payment System was based on ____.

Accepted Answer

The Medicare Prospective Payment System (PPS) was influenced by state experiments in prospective payment that were authorized by the federal government. These experiments helped shape the development and implementation of the PPS, which aimed to control healthcare costs by paying a predetermined, fixed amount for hospital stays.

Question 14

What set the stage for the passage of the Medicare drug benefit?

Accepted Answer

The combination of a federal budget surplus and skyrocketing drug costs created the need for a Medicare drug benefit. The surplus provided the funds for the program, while the rising drug costs made it necessary to provide affordable access to prescription medications for seniors.

Question 15

The Medicare drug benefit is delivered by ____.

Accepted Answer

The Medicare drug benefit, also known as Medicare Part D, is delivered through private insurance companies that contract with the federal government.

Quiz 8: Medicare: The Great Transformation