I just finished reading your article on the CPI website. I found it to be one of the best, if not the best, summations of the problems facing Medicare, the potential solutions buried within PPACA, alternate proposed solutions, and the seemingly insurmountable political obstacles to crafting any real fix.

It was both inspiring and depressing.

I find the whole problem, all in all, rather hopeless unless the current political landscape changes dramatically, and, looking at what is happening in this midterm cycle, that seems a pipe dream.

The one wildcard is Don Berwick. If anyone can find something workable and meaningful in the face of hopelessness, he can.

- Terry