http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122506801638770679.html
"For all of America's cherished belief in choice and freedom, it remains
an astonishing fact that the U.S. government forces citizens over the
age of 65 into a subpar health plan of its choosing. And so it is with
some hope that we greet a new federal lawsuit that aims to allow senior
citizens to flee Medicare.
The suit comes courtesy of Kent Masterson Brown, a lawyer who has
previously tangled with the government over Medicare benefits. Mr. Brown
represents three plaintiffs who are suing the federal government to be
allowed to opt out of Medicare without losing their Social Security
benefits.
Amazingly, this is not currently allowed. While the Social Security law
does not require participants to accept Medicare, and the Medicare law
does not require participants to accept Social Security, the Clinton
Administration in 1993 tied the programs together. Under that policy,
any senior who withdraws from Medicare also loses Social Security
benefits.
Mr. Brown's plaintiffs are three men who do not want to be in Medicare,
even though they paid Medicare taxes throughout their income-earning
years and though they are not asking for that money back. The three
instead saved privately to cover their health care expenses. They now
prefer to contract with private doctors and health facilities that they
believe are superior to those offered by Medicare."
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