Bush's reforms help slow Medicare spending

Medicare costs have been slowing dramatically in recent years, and it appears reforms enacted under the administration of President George W. Bush deserve the bulk of the credit, according to a report by the Washington Post.

According to two members of the bipartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, Bush’s Medicare prescription drug program, known as Medicare Part D, has accounted for 60 percent of the spending reduction related to Medicare benefits since 2011, though the program barely accounts for 10 percent of overall Medicare spending.

Committee members Loren Adler and Adam Rosenberg argued on the website of the prominent health policy journal, Health Affairs, that Medicare Part D deserves credit for helping shave Medicare expenses after examining previous cost projections from the Congressional Budget Office.

The CBO has lowered its projections of total spending on Medicare benefits from 2012 through 2021 by $370 billion, according to Adler and Rosenberg.

Read more from the Washington Post.