Professor Robert Field challenges a proposal to cut Medicare funding put forth by Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on July 22 in Check Up, a health-related blog published by the Philadelphia Inquirer.

As part of an overarching effort to rein in government spending, Cantor’s approach includes cutting payments to hospitals and nursing homes, many of which treat poor and uninsured patients, and adds copayments for lab tests and home health services.

This proposal “would save money for the federal government by shifting costs to almost every private citizen,” Field says.

Field asserts that, rather than a “sledgehammer” approach, the root causes of runaway spending should be addressed, namely rising health care costs and an aging population.

Professor Field probes the many aspects of health reform and health policy as a guest blogger of Check Up. His recent posts include:

• Politics Drives the Rush for Supreme Court Review of Health Reform
• Once Again, Medicaid Proves Its Worth 
• Raising Medicare’s Eligibility Age Could Actually Increase Costs 
• Obamacare Wins Big in Court, But You Might Not Know It 
• American-Style Health Care is a Dirty Word in England 
• Medicaid Deserves More Respect