Means-Testing Medicare Would Do No Harm

In their Feb. 25 op-ed “DOGE Won’t Be Enough to Get Debt Under Control,” James Baker III and John Diamond are correct to focus on the need to cut old-age programs. Although it’s often viewed as political suicide in Washington, cutting Medicare the right way would greatly help, not hurt, all seniors.

Reducing Medicare eligibility is often viewed as eliminating healthcare for the elderly. The opposite is true. Means-testing Medicare would avoid higher-income seniors paying mandatory premiums—i.e., taxes—to lock themselves into a government-run monopoly plan. In what other industries do we think customers are better off being forced to pay for a poorly run monopoly?