BIPARTISAN VOTE OVERRIDES SUNUNU AND BUSH, PRESERVES MEDICARE

New Hampshire reacts to Sununu's continued votes against seniors, disabled, military retirees

(Manchester, NH) - John Sununu again voted yesterday with George Bush and against a bipartisan proposal to preserve access to health care for New Hampshire's 200,000 plus Medicare beneficiaries, but a broad bipartisan coalition overrode Sununu's and Bush's opposition by a vote of 69-30. The proposal prevents a scheduled 10.6% cut in payments to doctors who treat Medicare patients, but Sununu opposed the measure because it would reduce profits for insurance companies that participate in Medicare to levels equal with doctors.

New Hampshire health care experts, seniors, doctors and military members reacted to Sununu's defense of insurance company profits at the expense of Medicare beneficiaries:

State Senator and former Deputy Director of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sgambati:
"John Sununu's two votes would have forced many physicians to stop seeing people on Medicare. His votes endangered more than 200,000 New Hampshire people on Medicare and would have negatively impacted more than 4,000 physicians," said State Senator and former Deputy Director of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sgambati. "If it were up to Sununu, the state would lose $40 million in federal health care dollars, and those costs would be shifted to local communities and the state as the elderly and disabled turn to them for help. The only beneficiaries of Sununu's voters were the private insurance companies."

Jim Smith

Dr. Michael Southworth

Fran Egbers