That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that—
making Medicare an available insurance plan for all Americans should be a unified goal despite differences in proposed strategies to achieve it;
the complexity of the existing health care system in the United States should be considered;
the desire of individuals to retain the ability to choose their health care should be considered;
a serious effort to change the health care system will require years of work;
a transition plan to reach this goal promptly could, as initial steps—
expand Medicare eligibility to allow every individual who is aged 40 to 64 and not a full-benefit Medicaid enrollee to buy into Medicare;
offer Medicare on the individual market to all age groups;
allow employers to contribute money to the Medicare program and offer it as a health care benefit to their employees; and
offer Medicare on the Exchanges established by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act;
after these initial steps, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services should conduct an assessment to evaluate how many individuals remain outside of the Medicare system and their reasons for declining enrollment;
the Secretary should use the findings of the assessment to determine how the Medicare program can be extended to the remaining individuals to enroll;
Medicare coverage should be expanded to include all essential health benefits as outlined in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act;
the Department of Veterans Affairs will continue to have a role to play in providing quality health care and expertise to the Nation’s veterans; and
the Indian Health Service will continue to have a role to play in providing quality health care and expertise to Native Americans.