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Posted on 03/14/2006 3:18:57 PM PST by kenth
CANANDAIGUA, N.Y. - President Bush campaigned Tuesday to boost the troubled new Medicare drug program that is the subject of a fierce election-year debate between Democrats and Republicans.
Bush pleaded with older Americans — a key voting block, particularly in midterm congressional elections — to look positively on the new benefit. Under the program, the government subsidizes medication costs for the elderly and disabled through plans created by private insurers.
In effect since January, it has been under fire from Democrats as too confusing for seniors with its numerous plans and coverage gaps — and from some conservative Republicans as an overly costly expansion of government.
But Bush said seniors, particularly those on the lower end of the income scale, should at least explore the options and consider enrolling before a May 15 deadline ushers in higher premiums.
"I think you're going to like what you see," the president said from a public high school gym in this conservative-leaning western New York community. "The key is saving a little money in retirement."
During a 35-minute discussion with a panel assembled by the White House, Bush acknowledged problems early on, when errors left many temporarily without coverage.
But he said the program is providing 50 percent reductions in drug costs for the average elderly patient, and significantly higher savings for lower-income seniors. And he said the introduction of choice — though bewildering at first — is also helping the 26 million who have enrolled so far to benefit from higher quality.
Bush also argued the program is proving less expensive than anticipated. Federal spending on the drug benefit will be 20 percent lower in 2006 than was estimated last summer, due to competition and the wider availability of generic drugs, according to the White House.
"It's working," Bush said. "It makes a lot of sense."
Later, Bush visited Ferris Hills at West Lake, a seniors residence. He was supposed to be there during a Medicare education session for residents, but weather forced a schedule rearrangement that had him arriving about 90 minutes late, after the program was completed. So Bush was left briefly greeting a few seniors who waited for him in common rooms.
He perhaps unwittingly used language recalling a famous Democratic anti-poverty initiative, President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal of the 1930s.
"Everybody explaining Medicare to you — the new deal?" Bush asked a crowd in one room. "I hope so. It's worth looking at."
Later Tuesday, back at the White House, the president was also meeting with representatives from groups that have been holding education and enrollment sessions around the country.
It was the first of two straight days Bush was devoting to the program. On Wednesday, he is delivering a Medicare speech at an assisted living facility in Silver Spring, Md., a Washington suburb.
The renewed presidential attention reflects the issue's high stakes in a year when most of Congress is up for re-election and Bush wants to help his party retain control of both chambers.
"The Medicare drug program has been a nightmare for America's seniors and is clear evidence of the Bush administration's shocking incompetence," Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (news, bio, voting record), D-Mass., said.
Democrats favored benefits provided directly by the government rather than through private companies and hope to make the program a liability for Republicans. Americans United, a group with close ties to congressional Democrats, intends to use polling, television advertisements and public events to campaign against the benefit.
While in New York, Bush met Jason McElwain, the autistic basketball team manager who drew national cheers by scoring 20 points in four minutes for his suburban Rochester high school team. The president also met relatives of five U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and elsewhere. While with the family of Jason Dunham, killed in April 2004 in Iraq, the president signed a bill naming a nearby post office for the Marine corporal.
Fox Special Report had a report of a survey that shows that most people who are on this new program like it.
My father-in-law said it saved him a lot of money on medications.
The first seniors to sign up were the ones who had high prescription drug costs or who were eligible for the freebie.
The rest of us probably waiting until May, the last month before we get punished for not signing up.
Seems odd that a government program has to be pushed for use.
Some of the older folks in the U.S. are much like those welfare people that were in New Orleans during it's flood. They would rather die waiting for someone else to help them than to try to save themselves.
My 98 year-old mother is in a nursing home and her monthly medication bill was averaging about $300 per month. I know this because I have been handling all her bills for the last 2 years. She is not on Medicaid, and wasn't on any Health Insurance plan that had a drug benefit.
I signed her up for the Medicare Part D (Drug Benefit) in January. I must say the process was entirely painless, and I didn't have any problems once I found out which "Drug Benefit Plan" her pharmacy supported. I chose the AARP plan, and I was able to sign-up on-line in about 10 minutes of work! We just got the first 'bill" under the plan. The co-payment charges was $53 and the monthly insurance premium is $30 for a total monthly "cost" of $83. Anyway you cut it, she is "saving" money!
From my datapoint of one, all the horror stories being printed are probably B.S. or self-generated. There was absolutely NOTHING negative in the sign-up process nor the program to date! IT WAS AS EASY AS GRINNING!!
The people having problems with this probably have problems with voting. No matter how simple you make things, somebody will not "understand".
I hope you told him, "You're welcome.", whether he thanked you for paying for it or not.
Just judging from the patter in the local barbershop, most of the seniors in this area of Florida believe that there is little, if anything, in this program for them. They believe that it represents a sweet deal for Big Pharma, but not for them.
I don't know enough about it to comment one way or the other. But it is pretty obvious that it is a PR disaster for the GOP in this area of this swing state.
BTTT.
I have heard the same thing.
Libertarian ping.To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here
I found the exact same thing with my mother. So far, she's just paying the premium (out of her Social Security check), but I went ahead and signed her up, as she is 86 and you know she's going to have some big time $$$ RX down the line.
My mother belongs to a seniors group so I helped them all with this program. They were all thoroughly confused. What seemed so simple to me was mind boggling to them.
Social Security sent them a book that was 1/2 inch thick and IF they made it to the part about signing up with one of the (too many to count) companies they just gave up.
The main question was....what if they don't cover my meds? They were all scared to death of this program.
This could be considered a sampling of 10 people and every single one of them had the same concerns and questions.
Why do we let millionaire elected officals decide what is best for the voters when they are getting the best medical service that the tax payers can afford for them?
That's unfortunate that there was an error made. However, as long as there are humans and computers working behind the scenes to handle plans such as these, there will always some errors made. That doesn't mean the "plan" is bad or too difficult. Even the very best plan on earth won't be perfect. Nothing ever is......except, of course, my grandson. ;)
"...there will always be some errors made". Even my post had errors and I was trying so hard to get it right. LOL
I'll be working till I'm in the grave. Good plan.
Like FDR`s Social Security program and LBJ`s Medicare program, GWB`s new trillion dollar Prescription Drug Program is more liberal social engineering. Plain and simple. Another bureaucratic blunder. We don't need more government, we need less government. Limited government is a key part of the conservative agenda. More expansion of government is not part of any conservative policy.
Signed up and they arranged for the payment to be taken from my social security check.
You can go to the Humana website, the number is prominently posted and a real person answers the phone too!
As of now, the deadline for signing up in May,2006.
Get it done if you don't have a prescription plan from a pension or former company.
Bush hater!!!!!
:-) Hehehe!
Excellent points. It's JAE. Just Another Entitlement.
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