Seniors Deserve A Real Prescription Drug Benefit
March 16, 2006, In the wee morning hours of November 22, 2003, the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit passed the U.S. House of Representatives under the quirkiest of circumstances. The Speaker of the House held votes open for nearly three hours – well beyond the usual 15 minutes allowed for votes. In what is believed to be the longest vote in the history of the House, former House Majority Leader Tom Delay twisted arms to bully members into changing their votes from no to yes. The bill ultimately passed by a one vote margin.
I had serious concerns about this legislation in 2003. I voted against the bill because it did little to make prescription drugs more affordable for our seniors. I thought the bill was far too generous to pharmaceutical companies, wasted taxpayer money on HMOs and private drug plans and did not provide a true benefit to our seniors.
Nearly 16 months later, I have heard from folks all across Middle Tennessee confirming my thoughts about the bill. In fact, none of the feedback has been positive.
Seniors tell me it’s too difficult to enroll in the program. They grow frustrated with busy phone lines and dropped calls. Those that have found a way through the red tape tell me they are being forced to switch medications or they simply can’t get the prescriptions they need. Many say they are even paying more for their prescriptions now than they were before the benefit went into effect.
We need to help our seniors. There is a better way to provide a prescription drug benefit. And it’s not too late to fix the problems by making sensible improvements to Medicare and implementing policies that will make prescription medicine more affordable for everyone.
Medicare needs to extend the enrollment deadline for the new drug program from May 15 to December 31, giving beneficiaries time to make an informed choice about the plans. A major challenge to seniors is that information about different plans is located only on the Internet, leaving many seniors without a way to access the information and compare plans.
One of the worst features of the bill is that it denies Medicare, a program that serves 42 million Americans, the power to negotiate lower drug prices. The Department of Veterans Affairs only serves 7.7 million veterans but is able to reduce the cost of prescription drugs by negotiating prices, saving billions of dollars for veterans and taxpayers. It’s a policy that works well for the VA, and it also can work for Medicare.
The bill does nothing to address soaring drug prices. It prevents seniors from buying lower-cost drugs from Canada and other countries. We should allow Medicare beneficiaries and other Americans to re-import safe, less expensive drugs from abroad.
Many seniors tell me that they get so frustrated at the pharmacy that they leave without getting their medicine. Congress must take steps to ensure that no senior or person with a disability leaves the pharmacy without their prescription drugs.
Seniors often choose particular plans to get coverage of specific medications. Private drug plans should be prevented from using bait-and-switch tactics to lure seniors into choosing a plan they think suits their needs, only to find out later that their drugs are no longer covered.
Finally, we should give seniors the option to sign up for a drug plan administered by Medicare itself rather than plans that are administered solely by private drug insurance companies.
Our seniors deserve better. I am supporting legislation that would implement these changes. And I will continue to fight for a prescription drug benefit that will actually benefit our seniors and provide them with the medicines they need at affordable prices.
