Posted on 11/12/2005 8:48:07 AM PST by Salvation
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For Immediate Release
November 12, 2005
President's Radio Address
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This coming Tuesday, America's Medicare beneficiaries can begin to enroll for new prescription drug coverage. This new benefit is the greatest advance in health care for seniors and Americans with disabilities since the creation of Medicare 40 years ago.
In the past, Medicare would pay tens of thousands of dollars for ulcer surgery, but not a few hundred dollars for prescription drugs that eliminate the cause of most ulcers. In the past, Medicare would pay more than $100,000 to treat the effects of a stroke, but not $1,000 per year for blood-thinning drugs that could have prevented the stroke in the first place.
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The new coverage will begin on January 1st. If you or someone you love depends on Medicare, I urge you to learn about the new choices you have so you can make a decision and enroll. Enrollment is entirely voluntary, and seniors who want to keep their Medicare coverage the way it is will be able to do so. But for those who want to take advantage of this new drug benefit, enrolling by May 15th will ensure you the lowest possible premiums. The sooner you enroll, the sooner you can have the peace of mind this coverage will bring.
The new prescription drug coverage will benefit people on Medicare in three important ways. First, it will help all seniors and Americans with disabilities pay for prescription drugs, no matter how they pay for their medicine now. Seniors who have no drug coverage and have average prescription drug costs will see savings of at least 50 percent. And seniors who have the highest drug costs will receive special help. Starting in January, once a senior has spent $3,600 in a year, Medicare will cover 95 percent of all prescription costs.
Second, this new coverage will offer more and better health care choices than ever before. That means seniors can save more and get the coverage they want -- not a "one size fits all" plan that does not meet their needs. Every prescription drug plan will offer a broad choice of generic and brand-name drugs, and seniors will be able to select any Medicare prescription drug plan in their area that fits their needs and their medical history.
Third, this new prescription drug coverage will provide extra help to low-income seniors and beneficiaries with disabilities. About a third of the seniors will be eligible for a Medicare prescription drug benefit that includes little or no premiums, low deductibles, and no gaps in coverage. On average, Medicare will pick up the tab for more than 95 percent of the costs that low-income seniors pay for prescription drugs.
The days of low-income seniors having to make painful sacrifices to pay for their prescription drugs are now coming to an end. Last month, those of you on Medicare received in the mail a handbook called "Medicare and You" that includes detailed information about your options. Citizen groups and faith-based organizations across America are also working to spread the word so that Medicare recipients can get their questions answered and make informed choices.
If you have Medicare, I urge you to take advantage of this opportunity to learn more. Review your choices, and make the decision that is right for you. If you have family or friends on Medicare, you can help too. Helping can be as simple as showing an older neighbor how to fill out a form, or making a call for your mom or dad. You can get information 24 hours a day by calling 1-800-MEDICARE, or by visiting the official Medicare website at Medicare.gov.
In the 21st century, preventing and treating illness often require prescription drugs. In the coming months, we will help every Medicare recipient make a confident choice about their prescription drug coverage. By expanding drug coverage for our nation's seniors, we will help all Americans on Medicare receive the modern health care they deserve.
Thank you for listening.
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Does anyone else have mixed feelings and judgments about this? I certainly do.
On one hand it would a great benefit to those in need.
On the other hand it would be a great monetary load on our governmnet and a step towards governmnet-provided health care which I oppose.
The President's timing on this is excellent. No doubts the Dems in CA will fight it tooth and nail; and resort to censorship. However, seniors should recognize -- they should choose between safe medications, now available through the President's plan.. or the surgeon's knife and the medical experimentation which goes with it.
It seem's like Bush's defense of his actions leading to the Iraq war was short-lived. Maybe we'll hear something in 6 months.
My thoughts exactly-we are getting to the point where people think they deserve to have any and everything given to them without having to work a day or spend a dime merely because they exist. They remind me of the Roman mob, clamoring for free drugs, etc. as if it were bread and circuses, and those of us who work for a living were not paying for it all.
I, too, would have liked to have seen more defense of the war in iraq.
there is a mournful article in today's WSJ than enrollments are below projections because seniors are too stupid to decide among their choices. Typical, huh. enrollment hasn't started yet. I got a not from my Humana Medicare HMO that everything is taken care of, but Dems have done everything they could think of to starve this program we like very much.
Sounds like if you opt in, your Medicare premiums will go up.
He'll be back with some in another week or so.
**but Dems have done everything they could think of to starve this program we like very much.**
So true.............it wasn't a dimocrat idea so they want it to fail.
I would think the same thing.
Yes, your premiums will go up, but the savings in drugs will more than offset it. Article in the paper today showed the choices many seniors are making. A lot of them have better coverage on their current insurance (UAW, UMW, teacher's union retirees) and they are sticking with their current plan. Enrollment will be principally among seniors who don't have prescription drug insurance at all, or who have very poor coverage on their current insurance.
</sarcasm>
Get a wife for free physicals.
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