I receive regular e-mail updates about important information from MyHeritage.org and I have re-printed the story below.

This article looks like it could be concerned with the State/County payments for Medicaid/Medicare and the Nursing Home issues relating to HB2. Just an important reminder that Senators Sgambati and D’Allesandro will be at the City Council meeting on Monday, March 24, 2008 at 7:30 PM in room 200A at City Hall. They will be bringing a representative from HHS to answer questions.

I have added some comments and talking points after the facts for each of these myths.

(If you would prefer to see the e-mail I received you can click on the link MyHerigage.org/E-mail Archives)

Government spending is spiraling out of control.

Over the next several decades, spending on the big three entitlement programs—Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security—will more than double as a proportion of the economy. Without reform, these massive spending increases will squeeze other programs, including the military, and could compel unprecedented tax increases.

Many liberals claim that reform isn’t needed, and their budget plan fails to curb this ever-rising spending. They base this inaction on five common myths that Heritage’s Brian Riedl debunks.

(see http://www.heritage.org/Research/Budget/bg2114.cfm)

Myth 1: There is no need to hurry on reform.

The Facts: Entitlement programs are big and getting bigger—quickly. Riedl notes that “Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid already absorb 42 percent of the federal budget and are growing by 7 percent annually, making them the largest impediment to balancing the budget.” And unless lawmakers act soon, “all 77 million baby boomers will have turned 55, leaving future lawmakers with the unpalatable options of massive, economy-stagnating tax in­creases, unprecedented program terminations, or the paring back of benefits for those over 55. Tack­ling reforms immediately will reduce their ultimate costs, spread the burden across more people, and give baby boomers more time to adjust their retire­ment strategies.”

My Comments: We have already seen what happens in New Hampshire because of the inflationary growth in these programs. Entitlements are partially cut because the State passes the costs onto the property taxpayers through the Counties. This strategy may help hide the problem at the federal level because New Hampshire apparently likes leaving money on the table in Washington D.C. when we don’t pay the full share, thus passing on more costs to the taxpayers. Expenses need to be brought under control sooner rather than later, when everyone is homeless because they can’t pay their property taxes.

Myth 2: These budget projections are unreliable.

The Facts: Incontestable demographics make clear that the retiring baby boomers will drive up entitlement costs. “The impending retirement of 77 million baby boomers is not a vague theoretical projection,” Riedl argues. As more and more boomers retire, the government will face increased Medicare spending, higher long-term care costs and Social Security benefits determined by a specific formula.

My Comments: They may say the budget projections are unreliable (except at Belknap County) but no one argues that the aging population is growing faster than other segments of the population. Is this why the state decided to get out of the business with HB2? Real reform is needed in the system, not pretend reform that only “passes the buck” to the everyday citizen. This effect is being compounded by the slowing economy and increasing energy costs.

Myth 3: Economic growth will solve the problem.

The Facts: “Revenues associated with higher economic growth would help only marginally,” Riedl explains. In addition, because entitlement costs are tied to economic indicators like income, “the same factors that could increase tax revenues would also increase spending.”

My Comments: Economic growth will help to lessen the impact on taxpayers, but as long as the state and county are happy with passing on the expenses nothing will be done until we make our voices heard. Imagine the impact we will feel when mandatory “universal” health care is instituted, depending on what November brings.

Myth 4: Cutting government waste and pork is enough.

The Facts: Cutting waste alone will not cover the massive new spending on entitlements. “In fact,” Riedl writes, “offsetting this spending hike would require eliminating every other federal program by 2049 except interest payments on the federal debt. Non-defense programs would be eliminated by 2030, and defense spending would be eliminated by 2049.”

My Comments: I agree that cutting government waste and pork isn’t enough to achieve the goal of affordable benefits, but it is a good place to start. I have to give credit to my friend Skip Murphy, with whom I am having a blog debate (click here and here for his side of the debate), this item does point to your main theme for the debate “reduce the expenses to bring the budget in line with reality” does cover reducing waste and pork.

Myth 5: Letting the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts expire will solve the problem.

The Facts: “Losing the tax cuts would close less than 1 percentage point of the 10.2 percent gap” between current and future entitlement costs. And that projection from the Congressional Budget office doesn’t take into account the likely economic consequences of such a tax increase.

My Comments: Have our representatives at the state and county level taken the likely economic consequences of a tax increase into account? I think not. The main point of this article is that expenditures (costs) must be controlled, which will reduce the effect on revenues (taxes) needed.

Speaking of the economic consequences of taxes, has anyone pressed the issue about expanding the tax credits Gov. Lynch is advocating for the North Country to other areas of the state? is this because we don’t need economic growth in this state, we have property taxpayers to pick-up the bills.

My hope is that everyone takes these considerations into account as we head to the primary in September and the polls in November. We can only complain about the cards we are dealt with if we refuse to admit that we are the ones dealing the cards.

YOUR VOTE COUNTS.

Do the research so it isn’t wasted.