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GOP Works on Elderly Drug Plan
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Medicare recipients would receive protection against catastrophic drug costs and the low-income elderly would get federal subsidies for all their prescription expenses under election-year legislation that Republicans intend to bring to the House floor by Memorial Day. GOP officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the legislation also will incorporate President Bush's proposal for government-issued prescription drug discount cards designed to reduce the cost of medicine for Medicare beneficiaries. These officials said final details remain to be worked out on the bill, which envisions older Americans receiving coverage from private insurance companies in a market overseen by Medicare. The program, which officials stressed would be voluntary, is expected to cost the government $350 billion over 10 years. The issues of prescription drug coverage and Medicare generally work to the disadvantage of Republicans, according to polls taken for both parties, and are expected top figure prominently in the fall elections. And with the outlines of the legislation set, House Speaker Dennis Hastert launched an effort during the day to cut into the Democrats' advantage. Hastert, R-Ill., said the House would pass the legislation quickly, ``so the Senate has enough time to act in order to get a final bill to the president's desk'' before Congress adjourns. Flanked by other lawmakers, Hastert unveiled a list of principles he said would guide Republicans, including steps to lower the cost of prescription drugs immediately and guarantee prescription drug coverage for all older people, as well as a stronger Medicare overall, with more choices and more savings. ``House Republicans firmly believe that no senior should be forced to choose between putting food on the table or buying the medicines they need,'' he said. Across the Capitol, Sens. Zell Miller, D-Ga., and Bob Graham, D-Fla., unveiled a competing plan, at a cost of between $400 billion and $500 billion over a decade, more than the GOP prescription. Like the Republican plan, it includes a full subsidy for low-income seniors and catastrophic coverage for all seniors. It includes a monthly premium estimated at $25 a month, and a provision for the government to pay 50 percent of the cost of each prescription until the catastrophic coverage takes effect. Even though the prescription drug issue has been intensely political in recent years, Graham said ``there are fewer differences'' between the plan he and Miller back and the one under consideration by House Republicans. ``I think there is a better spirit than there has been in the past,'' he said. House Democrats criticized the GOP bill even before it was released. ``Unfortunately, for that amount of money you can't cover the people who need to be covered,'' said House Democratic Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo. He called it the same ``warmed-over stuff we've seen before.'' Many Democrats generally favor a uniform prescription drug benefit to be administered through Medicare. The $350 billion that House Republicans have set aside over the next decade for prescription drug coverage contrasts with the $190 billion that Bush proposed and is well in excess of the $160 billion earmarked for a prescription drug bill that the GOP pushed through the House two years ago. The result is a more robust federal benefit than Republicans endorsed in 2000. Several sources said the outlines of the legislation were discussed Tuesday at a private meeting of House leaders. They stressed that the final details remain to be worked out, and costs could vary. For all but low income Americans, officials said seniors would pay monthly premiums, likely in the range of $37 a month. Additionally, they would pay deductible amounts, possibly the first $250 of drug costs annually. After that, the federal government would pick up approximately 75 percent or 80 percent of the cost of drugs up to $1,000, and perhaps 50 percent of the next $1,000 in costs. Over $2,000, individuals could be required to pay out of pocket the full costs of additional drugs, up to an amount to be determined, probably $5,000. After that, insurance would pay. Older people with incomes up to 135 percent of the poverty level would have all costs paid, with partial subsidies for seniors with incomes of up to 150 percent. Republicans have long conceded a political problem with the issue. Private and public polling alike shows Democrats are favored on the issue by double-digit margins over the GOP. GOP candidates, attacked ferociously two years ago on the prescription drug issue, countered that the House had passed legislation to address the problem. The measure died in the GOP-controlled Senate, but party strategists concluded that response helped Republicans hold control of the House. Democrats have made it clear they intend similar attacks this year, and Republicans long ago decided they would have a similar response. Expressions of support for prescription drug coverage in television commercials have ``a positive impact on party and candidate confidence on this issue and health care in general,'' strategists told rank and file Republicans in a presentation last week. FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Action on Aging distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
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