The Hill News

GOP Rep. Lou Barletta's (Pa.) local town hall meeting got heated on Wednesday night over his party's proposal to overhaul Medicare.

Barletta, a freshman who voted for the proposal, offered a lengthy defense of Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-Wis.) plan to change Medicare benefits for new entrants to the program, saying it will make it financially solvent in the long term.

But the congressman was questioned at length by a 64-year-old woman, who is reportedly a president of a local Democratic group. She said that the plan would turn Medicare into a voucher program that would put seniors at the mercy of the insurance industry. 

"I won’t destroy Medicare, Medicare is going to be destroyed by itself," Barletta replied, according to the Allentown Morning Call. 

After that, comments from members of the audience devolved into a shouting match. 

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