Key House chairman: GOP will change Medicare, to 'save' it

GOP Rep. Kevin Brady of Texas, head of the Ways and Means Committee, insisted Republicans won't be deterred by the politics, even though Donald Trump won election as president on promises to protect the popular health care program for older Americans, and Democrats are already warning of a "war on seniors."

[...] he declined to say when the party might try to pass "premium support," the controversial approach that would, over time, remake Medicare into a voucher-like program that would force seniors to buy health insurance on the open market.

"[...] I envision 2017 as taking steps, small, in preparing for larger steps to save Medicare for the long term," he said, mentioning early reforms in the areas of post-acute care, nursing homes, home health care agencies and rehabilitation facilities.

The incoming Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, fired an opening salvo earlier this week when he declared at a press conference: It's clear that Washington Republicans are plotting a war on seniors next year.

The lesson is not lost on Republicans, and several Senate Republicans said this week that they would not be eager to make Medicare changes their top priority, especially given their plans to move quickly to repeal President Barack Obama's health care law.

Adding to the political complications for the GOP, Trump campaigned as a protector of Medicare, saying in an interview with The Daily Signal last year: I'm not going to cut Social Security like every other Republican and I'm not going to cut Medicare or Medicaid.