Thompson Not Sure His Medicare Plan Would Save Money

Republican U.S. Senate Candidate Tommy Thompson says he doesn’t know whether his plan to rework Medicare will save the government any money.

While health care has dominated the discussion in the race for U.S. Senate, Thompson didn’t start talking about this plan until just a few weeks ago. The way it works, he says, is that in 2020, the government would maintain Medicare for anyone 50 or older. Thompson says people under 50 would have the option of enrolling in the same government health care plan used by the President, members of Congress and federal employees.

Thompson was asked about the details by the Wisconsin State Journal editorial board, and specifically, about whether it would save money. The former governor replied: “I don’t know, I haven’t scored it out yet.”

The Congressional Budget Office, or the CBO, can score or estimate the costs of a plan like this for members of Congress, but not for a Senate candidate like Thompson. Thompson said he’d find out how much it cost once he was elected, “We may have to modify it as we go along. When I’m elected to the United States Senate, I get a chance to use the computers and have the access to CBO, I’ll be able to make the necessary things.”

Thompson says he believes his plan will work and contends Democrat Tammy Baldwin has not offered an alternative save Medicare. Baldwin’s campaign contends Thompson is only floating his plan to try and distance himself from GOP Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan’s Medicare proposals.