Posted on 04/11/2007 12:07:51 PM PDT by Froufrou
The program created by Wisconsin five years ago to help low-income seniors get prescription drugs serves 104,000 people and, state officials say, has saved the federal government $669 million in Medicaid costs.
That is why Gov. Jim Doyle (D) and seniors advocates were more than disappointed last week when the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services decided to pull the plug on federal funding for SeniorCare after June 30.
"The Bush administration is making a terrible mistake," Doyle said in a statement after learning of the decision from acting CMS Administrator Leslie V. Norwalk. "As a result, Wisconsin seniors will pay more and get less coverage, while drug companies make even larger profits. Our state won't be allowed to negotiate better prices on behalf of our seniors as we do now."
In an interview, Norwalk disputed Doyle's contention that participants would be worse off, saying that many, with the state's help, could get comparable coverage under the new Medicare drug benefit. That benefit, known as Medicare Part D, did not exist when the SeniorCare program was created with federal permission in 2002.
She also said Wisconsin officials have not offered data showing that SeniorCare saves the federal government money, a requirement of the "waiver" under which it was created in 2002. "It isn't clear that it saved Medicaid any money," Norwalk said. "They did not show that analysis. They just put out the numbers. . . .
Consequently, we are not going to extend the program. But I totally appreciate that seniors in Wisconsin are concerned, and I want to do all that we can at CMS to make sure that we work with the state to make sure that seniors are no worse off than they are today."
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Good grief. Who are they going to blame their state legislators/senate decisions on when the next administration takes office?
Never mind. If it is a Republican administration....
“Wisconsin officials have not offered data showing that SeniorCare saves the federal government money, a requirement of the “waiver” under which it was created in 2002.”
It’s not anyone’s fault but their own. Wisconsin dropped the ball and now the waiver has expired.
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