Medicare:
The Medicare Part D drug benefit, created under the Medicare Modernization Act of 2004 is too confusing, too expensive and does not give seniors the full benefit they need to stay healthy. Brian supports a voluntary prescription drug program under Medicare so that seniors will have access to the care and drugs they need. He is working to ensure that no New York senior is worse off under the new plan than the old. He will continue to work to ensure that the new program is helping America’s seniors, and not hurting them.

Medicaid:
Medicaid serves as an important safety net for Americans by providing health and long term care coverage. Currently, the Medicaid program provides coverage to more than 40 million Americans. This crucial program covers twenty million children - or one in four - as well as 8.6 million adults, 4.1 million elderly, and 7 million blind and disabled individuals. Growing unemployment means that working families are losing employer-provided healthcare and that states are struggling to provide healthcare coverage for even more people. Cutting federal funding or reforming how that funding is given to the states through Medicaid is particularly troublesome during a time when states are facing severe budget crises.

New York State is one of only two states in the country that requires local governments to pay for part of the non-federal portion of Medicaid funding. As a result, local property taxes continue to rise, which citizens continue to struggle to pay, to meet the growing demands on the Medicaid program. Brian believes in a reform package that reduces the burden on local taxpayers and ensures that the more than 40 million Americans receiving services under Medicaid now, can still get the healthcare they need.