Congresswoman Annie Kuster (NH-02) yesterday sent the following letter to President Obama urging him to protect Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security as he works with Congress to address our nation’s serious fiscal challenges.

February 28, 2013

The Honorable Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20500

Dear President Obama,

As you work with Congress to confront our nation’s serious fiscal challenges, I urge you to defend three pillars of economic security for New Hampshire families: Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.  Granite State seniors have worked hard their entire lives as they raised their families, strengthened our country, and paid into these vital programs.  Now more than ever, they deserve our support and the right to live with comfort and dignity.  That is why I will not vote to cut benefits to these vital social programs. Republicans and Democrats can and must unite around common sense reforms to strengthen Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, so we may ensure that New Hampshire families can continue to count on these programs for generations to come.

Both parties agree that to secure the long term viability of Medicare and Medicaid we must tackle the skyrocketing cost of healthcare.  We owe it to the people we serve to do so by encouraging innovation, eradicating inefficiency, and aggressively cracking down on waste, fraud, and abuse within the system.  By stretching every dollar, leveraging federal purchasing power to secure lower prescription drug prices, and enacting other smart fiscal reforms, we can preserve the future of Medicare and Medicaid without compromising the benefits senior citizens and vulnerable families rely on.

Together with Medicare and Medicaid, Social Security has lifted millions of Americans out of poverty.  Rather than raising the retirement age, we must reinforce these essential programs through practical reforms.  For example, we should lift the cap on Social Security withholding taxes so middle class families no longer contribute higher percentages of their income than millionaires and billionaires. It is the fair and right thing to do. Both parties must embrace this and other sensible steps to ensure Social Security’s solvency long into the future.

Our nation’s commitment to Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security reflects our commitment to the sick, elderly, and vulnerable among us.  In the days ahead, I urge you to partner with both Republicans and Democrats to build on that commitment and protect these essential programs.  If both parties work together, I am confident we will find balanced, bipartisan solutions to cut spending, grow our economy, and maintain our promises to our seniors.

Sincerely,



Ann McLane Kuster
Member of Congress
 

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