News & Blogs

Commentary: AARP has a massive conflict of interest in drug price debate

AARP has weighed in as the 800-pound gorilla in Virginia’s drug pricing debate, lending its weight to a so-called Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) that would be empowered to impose price controls on medicines. But it’s crucial for legislators and the governor to understand that AARP advocates not on behalf of seniors but rather on behalf of its corporate partner and principal funding source — UnitedHealth. AARP’s own survey research shows that insurance-related costs such…

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U.S. Opens UnitedHealth Antitrust Probe

The Justice Department has launched an antitrust investigation into UnitedHealth, owner of the biggest U.S. health insurer, a leading manager of drug benefits and a sprawling network of doctor groups. The investigators have in recent weeks been interviewing healthcare-industry representatives in sectors where UnitedHealth competes, including doctor groups, according to people with knowledge of the meetings.

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AARP’s 2024 Great Senior Scare

Only in Washington can Congress’s bipartisan efforts to combat fraud in Medicare and Social Security cause alarm from organizations claiming to be advocates for seniors. A recent AARP fundraising letter shows how much AARP fears congressional efforts to combat fraud in these programs. The AARP letter amounts to scaremongering among America’s seniors. Congress is reasonably concerned about the national debt, estimated at $34 trillion. Spending cuts are one tool Congress can use to reduce debt.…

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10,000+ NH Seniors Petitioning AARP to Mount Legal Challenge Against Washington’s Raid on Medicare

Contact: Michael DeSantis [email protected] MANCHESTER, NH/WASHINGTON, DC – January 22, 2024 – More than 10,000 New Hampshire seniors have signed the EndTheRaid.org petition urging AARP to leverage its advocacy and litigation resources to mount a legal challenge to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). It is estimated that the IRA spending bill is diverting approximately $280 billion in projected Medicare drug savings to pay for unrelated spending and special interest handouts, including costly tax credits for…

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The Association of Mature American Citizens Has Quietly Become A Conservative Powerhouse

For decades now, AARP, which once stood for the American Association of Retired Persons and has been subsequently rebranded as just a set of initials that stand for nothing, has been one of the most influential lobby groups in Washington, D.C. Though AARP was supposed to represent a large and politically diverse cross-section of older Americans, its transformation into an overtly partisan Democrat organization is hard to deny. Recently, AARP lobbied heavily for the Biden…

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Why is AARP Gaslighting Social Security?

The AARP is out with an interesting new advertising campaign. Actually, it’s an old AARP warning about threats to Social Security, but with a curious new twist. AARP is now acknowledging what recent polling of older Americans has shown: that many voters 55 and older don’t agree with many of the organization’s positions or trust it on many levels due to its corporate financial relationships. AARP now wants this crucial voting bloc’s trust back when it comes…

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AARP doesn’t speak for me (nor likely you)

Older Americans find themselves in dire need of champions in Washington and state capitals like never before. That’s because it has become increasingly clear that the AARP, once a trusted advocate, no longer truly represents our best interests. A glaring instance of AARP’s misplaced priorities is its relentless push for the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) signed into law by Congress last year. With slick advertising and promotional campaigns, AARP touted the IRA as a solution…

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