December 08, 2019

Tracy Cuccia

Tracy Cuccia, 56, worked for Wisconsin’s state health insurance helpline, and with careful planning was able to retire at 55. She says that changing the rules midstream unfairly affects those who planned ahead – and made their decisions when the government promised Medicare eligibility would start at 65.

Now, she is afraid that the Republican plan to cut and privatize Medicare will force her to return to the workforce when she is in her 60’s.

In her 38 ½ years in state government, she counseled seniors on Medicare issues. She found that many people chose Medicare Advantage plans with no premium when they were healthy, and regretted later that they had not chosen traditional Medicare when their health declined.

She does not trust insurance companies, which are designed to always make their profit margin and use claim denials and stall tactics to keep it that way. She also worries about people believing Speaker Paul Ryan when he says that he is “helping people save Medicare.”

“It’s a lie – Medicare is not broken,” she warns.

Tracy feels that the Republican plan will also lead to higher costs overall. “People are not going to seek care when they need it, and then it will be twice as expensive later.”