Durbin Says Medicare Drug Plan too Confusing; Urges Congress to Delay Enrollment Penalties to Give Seniors More Time

DURBIN SAYS MEDICARE DRUG PLAN TOO CONFUSING; URGES CONGRESS TO DELAY ENROLLMENT PENALTIES TO GIVE SENIORS MORE TIME

With enrollment set to begin today in the Medicare benefit drug plan, U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) said seniors need more time to navigate through the hundreds of confusing offers in order to choose the plan that best meets their health care needs. Making an uninformed decision, Durbin warned, could result in Medicare beneficiaries enrolling in a costly plan that does not cover their prescription drugs.

Durbin joined Senate and House Democrats to urge Congress to pass the Medicare Informed Choice Act of 2005. The bill will postpone the enrollment penalties until the end of 2006 so beneficiaries can learn more about the new drug benefit, obtain independent counseling, and make the right choice.

"Seniors in Illinois are frustrated and many are angry; they don't see a lot of benefit in this so-called prescription drug benefit. What seniors told us they wanted was a simple way to get lower prescription drug prices. Instead, they were handed a complex, confusing plan that in the end does very little to reduce the cost of prescription drugs. What it does is increase the profits for drug companies and line the pockets of their CEOs," Durbin said.

"Until Congress passes a plan allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices, the least we can do for seniors is give them more time to understand their options and make the best choice under the current system. With more than 130 different drug plans in Illinois, the risk is just too great for seniors to make uniformed decisions about their health," Durbin added.

Under the Medicare prescription drug plan signed into law in 2003, 42 million beneficiaries nationwide, including 1.7 million Illinoisans, are eligible to purchase the new Medicare Part D drug benefit through a private drug plan or enroll in a Medicare managed care plan that offers a drug benefit. The enrollment period begins November 15, 2005 and ends on May 15, 2006. Beneficiaries will be charged a late enrollment penalty if they choose to enroll at a later date.

Durbin underscored the need for an extension by pointing to a Kaiser Family Foundation survey released last week. The study showed two-thirds of seniors don't know they have to choose a private plan and one-third of seniors think they can receive their drugs through Medicare. The poll also showed 76% of seniors have never been on-line, making researching these plans even more intimidating. Most alarming, 63% of seniors don't know they will face financial penalties if they don't sign up by next May.

In Illinois, the Senior Health Insurance Program (SHIP) has been designated the principal resource for seniors. Illinoisans can contact SHIP directly at 1-800-548-9034 for information about the Medicare benefit drug plan. However, according to SHIP program officials in Illinois, SHIP's 700 volunteers are being "bombarded" with questions from anxious seniors, many of whom need personal counseling.

"There is not enough assistance for seniors," Durbin said. "Some have children, friends or neighbors who are willing to help. Others must depend on government agencies. But with 1.7 million Medicare beneficiaries in Illinois, each one of the 700 SHIP volunteer is supposed to educate 2,374 beneficiaries about this complex new bureaucracy. That is not fair. Seniors need and deserve more time."

In addition to postponing the enrollment penalties until the end of 2006, the Medicare Informed Choice Act will give every beneficiary the opportunity to make a one-time change in plan enrollment at any point in 2006. Additionally, the legislation will protect employees from being dropped by their former employer's plan during the first year of the implementation of the drug plan. Without these changes, beneficiaries will face a late-enrollment penalty if they enroll in a plan after May 15, 2006, could lose employer-provided retiree health benefits if they enroll in some Part D plans, and could be prohibited from switching plans until 2007.

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