The former governor and 2012 presidential candidate doesn't sound like he wants to end the fee-for-service system
Republican presidential candidates can expect to get hounded by questions on Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wisc.) plan to overhaul Medicare. Do they support it? Would they sign it into law if given the chance? Overhauling Medicare is controversial, and the Democratic win in New York's special congressional election last night will only increase the political pressure on Republicans to choose their words carefully.
Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, one of those 2012 candidates, gave his own answer today during a question-and-answer session following a speech at The Cato Institute, the libertarian think tank in downtown Washington, D.C. He didn't offer any specifics, but it sounds like he opposes the basic outline of Ryan's proposed overhaul.
"The direction of it is positive, but I'm going to have my own plan. Some things are going to be the same, some things are going to be different," Pawlenty said about Ryan's budget plan.
"There will be some differences," Pawlenty said, on the topic of Medicare specifically. "We'll be talking about payment reform and paying providers ... [letting people] choose to stay on the current program or [choose] other options," he said.