mr. margolis >> last speaker, berry corngold. >> hi, berry corngold, i'm with the san francisco cab driver's association. we're kind of in a quandry about this. we definitely need to have all the cabs being able to be seen on one screen and if this is the only way to do it, then i guess we would support this. but i've also questioned the amount of information that's being collected with this stuff, if that's necessary and i'm also questioning how these apps like fly wheel, which has been very successful, they have over 1100 cabs on their system, i use it, i live out in the sunset, very good service out in the sun set, it's never more than 3 or 4 minutes to get a cab when i've used it, i'm wondering how these companies are going to compete and we haven't been informed all about that so these are my concerns. i can't weigh in real strongly one way or another on this because of these reservations. i will say that it's very irritating to see all these other cabs, these other taxicabs with pink mustaches or whatever or side car socks that are not being regulated whatsoever and now you guys want t

mr. margolis >> last speaker, berry corngold. >> hi, berry corngold,

sentence but the court counted time already served towards that new prison term but it will call mr eric margolis believes it may be a mandela moment forward after his release one wonders he might be a little traces by his lip and mouth started rants against google groups for a while what little you know after ten years of prison will be mandela or will he turn out and really start a lasting good groundwork. trapped in a brilliant man. he really. was and he simply i don't think that russia is certainly not in the whereas. no none of the saudis are going to barter there was little. love lost the russian oligarchs once people still do should have been there my heart. so he's lovely really if you have got away with some money and do a would not longer jail sentence. well we can hold a press conference will be held at twelve g.m.t. in berlin of course we will be covering it live on air and online as well at r.t. dot com. a car blast near an elementary school in. as homs province has reportedly killed five students into the school's employees earlier this week at least eighty seven eons including wome

mr. joe baker, president of medicare rights center. dr. bob margolis, ceo, health care partners, co-chairman. ms. marsha gold, senior fellow, mathematica policy research, and mr. jon kaplan, senior partner and managing director of the boston consulting group. your written testimony will be made a part of the record. you have five minutes to summarize your testimony. at this time the chair recognizes mr. holtz-eakin for five minutes for an opening statement. >> thank you chairman, ranking member pallone. let me take this opportunity emphasize a few points that are made in a written statement. first i said and pointed out by the chairman and others in opening statements is that medicare advantage is a valuable and popular part of medicare. nearly 30% of beneficiaries voluntarily enrolled in the increasing enrollment each year and it does provide extra services and innovative approaches to health care in the medicare program. it disproportionally serves lower income beneficiaries and minorities and has been -- the program of choice for them. but most impo

margolis. we had a controversy between mr. kaplan and ms.gold that says they are not sure that there is improved quality data. your testimony is excellent. my gosh, when you show the plans versus the fee-for-service and the readmission rate is so much lower and the number of hospital days, etc. that is proof of what you ar were disturbing is the coordinated care is that a fair statement? >> thank you for that compliment, sir. >> there are things that are very evident. first of all i'm a high promoter of transparency and quality transforming. so i recognize the star program as a very good step forward. i wish there was a similar program so we would have evidence of whether medicare and fee-for-service is creating -- >> with me emphasize because i take care of the special needs patients that you mentioned the end-stage renal disease. that is where the care is the most important, yet you describe the cuts that go to the special needs program; correct? >> yes i think i said several times the greatest threat at the moment is that if we cut throug

mr. joe baker, president of medicare rights center. dr. bob margolis ceo of health care partners. , senior partner and managing director of the boston consulting group. your written testimony will be made part of the record. ui five minutes to summarize your testimony. mr. eakinrecognizes for a five minutes opening statement. >> thank you for the privilege of hearing today. let me upsize a few points that i made in my written statement. the first has been pointed out by the chairman and others. medicare advantage is a valuable and popular part of medicare. nearly 30% of beneficiaries voluntarily enrolled in it. it does provide extra services and innovative approaches to health care in the medicare program. it disproportionately serves lower income beneficiaries and minorities. it has been the program of choice for them. most importantly, medicare advantage is not fee-for-service medicine. it represents an important opportunity to move away from the practice of medicine that costly and that rewards volume over quality and american health care system. me

margolis mention. buries his concerns in terms of funding. >> mr. kaplan, very quickly if you can add to that. >> my simple answer is that partnership, public-private partnership has been very successful and, therefore, in my mind we should invest in debt and make it better as opposed to cutting it back. >> thank you so much. thank you to all of you, and thank you to the chairman. i went over my time, so thank you for allowing me to do so. >> the chair thanks the gentleman appeared that concludes our first round of question. we will go to one follow-up per site. and dr. burgess, we'l we will bn with five minutes of follow-up. >> dr. holtz-eakin, i want to follow up on the stuff we were talking about earlier in that first round. it appears in washington today there is a crisis in common. the president has sold the affordable care act on just a raft of false premises. you can keep your plan. false. you can keep your doctor. faults. these are broken promises and these in fact are the opportunity cost that americans are paying for the affordable care ac