Turner, Dems Trade Barbs On Medicare Vote

U.S. Rep. Bob Turner, R-Forest Hills, traded barbs with Democrats over a House vote on Medicare this week, with both sides claiming the other was putting seniors on an ice floe.

In a symbolic vote Thursday afternoon, House Republicans passed a measure that would repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board, a Medicare board charged with cost controls in the nation's huge senior health system.

The House Resolution will likely go no further, however, as it has no chance of making it to the President's desk with Democrats in control of the Senate.

“When given the chance to protect Medicare, Representative Bob Turner reconfirmed his commitment to ending Medicare making things harder for New York seniors,” said Josh Schwerin of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.  “Representative Bob Turner can try to hide all he wants but his intentions are crystal clear — Turner will protect massive tax breaks for billionaires and Big Oil but will vote to end the Medicare guarantee and increase costs for seniors in New York.”

Republicans, for their part, have said the panel is designed to ration Medicare, a charge the administration flatly denies.

In a statement, Turner aimed his criticism squarely at President Barack Obama.

“The vote serves as a stark reminder that on the eve of the two-year anniversary of Obamacare being signed into law, ineffective and dangerous portions of the President’s healthcare overhaul continue to surface," Turner said. "The American people should not have to suffer the consequences of this rushed and irresponsible law.”