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State stays
with senior drug plan
"We'll
stick with a version of the Prescription Advantage program," said
Preston, explaining that an infusion of federal Medicaid money to the
state made the $96 million program more affordable. Senior
advocates and lawmakers, however, suggested that the administration had
finally bowed to political pressure and said it was good news for 80,000
seniors and disabled people enrolled in the plan and for 11,000 more who
applied last month to join. "I
don't know how many times they're going to flip-flop," said state
Senator Therese Murray, the Plymouth Democrat who chairs the Senate Ways
and Means Committee. "I
understand they're new, they're trying to get their sea legs. I'd like to
think they were flip-flopping to the right side of the equation. They're
now seeing the light; obviously seniors vote," said Murray. The
new position on the drug discount program marked the second change for the
administration on funding the program. After pledging during his campaign
to support Prescription Advantage, Romney eliminated funding for the
program in the budget and announced last February that his administration
would create a plan this year to provide seniors more affordable drug
coverage. But the Legislature, backed by a strong senior lobby, restored
the program and the governor signed a budget that allocated $96 million
for Prescription Advantage. Preston
said the administration is still working on ways to save the state money
in purchasing drugs for seniors, state employees, and Medicaid recipients.
But he said it will probably be at least a year before the administration
presents proposals to consolidate all the state's drug purchasing, despite
Legislative pressure to move ahead more quickly. The
administration has asked researchers at the University of Massachusetts
Medical School to develop a proposal for a nonprofit agency to manage the
state's drug purchases. But Preston said UMass's work is behind schedule
and probably won't be available until next summer. He said the
administation is waiting to see if the proposal would save the state
money. But
lawmakers are growing impatient. The Legislature has repeatedly passed
authorizations for the state to use its purchasing power to negotiate
lower drug prices, but none of the past three administrations has moved on
the measures. "I
don't think they need to be waiting until next year," said state
Representative William Straus, a Mattapoisett Democrat. "They have
the legislative authority to get on the horn and start dealing with these
manufacturers." Preston
said there had been "an evolution of thinking" in the
administration on Prescription Advantage and that plans for a new program
were set aside as Congress aggressively worked on a Medicare drug benefit. "We
still think it's the federal government's responsibility to provide drug
coverage," Preston said. "We see the Prescription Advantage
program as a bridge to tide our people over until there is a legitimate
federal benefit." The
administration still remains concerned about the cost of the state
program, he said, adding that the 11,000 new applications submitted during
August's open enrollment period are likely to push the program to its
budget limit, if not over. But he said he hopes to avoid cutting benefits
to enrollees. Deborah
Banda, state director for AARP, said seniors would "remain
vigilant" even if the administration appeared to be newly committed
to the program. "AARP would love to see a Medicare drug benefit broad
enough that we don't need Prescription Advantage any more, but the chances
of that happening are somewhat slim," she added. Others
are concerned that the administration is not aggressive enough in pursuing
ways to decrease drug costs without cutting benefits. "I'm
afraid if we do the status quo, we're not going to be able to expand
enrollment and we're going to have to cut the benefits," said state
Senator Mark Montigny, a New Bedford Democrat. "I was hoping there
might be a significant innovation that they had thought of to provide the
same coverage for a lesser amount." Copyright
© 2002 Global Action on Aging
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