|
E-mail this page to a friend!
Less Than Half of Senior Citizens Joining Medicare
Drug Plans
New poll finds
enthusiasm for the program is less than six months ago
| |
Seniors Turnings Less Friendly to Drug
Plan
click for larger view |
|
| |
 |
|
Feb. 21, 2006 – Less than half – about 45 percent –
of senior citizens have enrolled or plan to enroll in the Medicare prescription drug
program, according to the latest poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Most seniors citizens say the do not intend to enroll (29%) or they are
still uncertain (23%). And, the poll says, according to a report by KaiserNet.org, seniors have become less enthusiastic about the new
Medicare drug benefit over the past six months.
Medicare | Three in Four Seniors Have
Reached Decision About Signing Up for Medicare Prescription Drug
Benefit, But About One-Quarter Still Uncertain, Poll Finds
[Feb 21, 2006]
 Forty-five percent of seniors have enrolled in the
Medicare prescription drug benefit or plan to enroll before the May 15
deadline, while 29% do not plan to enroll and 23% are unsure, according
to a tracking poll released on Friday by the
Kaiser Family Foundation,
CQ HealthBeat reports (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 2/17).
| |
Related Stories |
|
| |
Seniors with Chronic Illness Get Special Help in
Choosing Medicare Drug Plan
Feb. 17, 2006 - A free, step-by-step guide that
helps senior citizens and other Medicare beneficiaries with chronic or
complex medical conditions find a Medicare prescription drug plan is now
available. The online guide is the brainchild of Medicare Access for
Patients-Rx, (MAPRx), a coalition formed by patient advocate, family
caregiver and health professional organizations.
Read
more...
Democrats, Advocates Beating Drums for Changes to
Medicare Drug Program
Feb. 16, 2006 – Congressional Democrats and
advocacy groups are beginning a push to make changes in the Medicare
prescription drug program. President Bush, however, says legislative
changes to the drug benefit are unnecessary and HHS Secretary Mike
Leavitt says problems can be corrected with administrative action,
according to a report by KaiserNet.org.
Read more...
Read more on
the
Medicare Drug Program |
|
The majority of seniors who do not plan to enroll
already participate in another drug plan or other program that helps pay
for prescription medications, according to the poll (Kaiser Family
Foundation release, 2/17).
In addition, the poll finds that about 45% of
seniors have an unfavorable view of the drug benefit, compared with 23%
who have a favorable view. In August 2005, seniors were as likely to
view the benefit favorably (32%) as unfavorably (Lueck, Wall Street
Journal, 2/17).
The poll also finds that 45% of seniors say they
understand how the drug benefit will affect them personally, compared
with 33% in August 2005 (Kaiser Family Foundation release, 2/17)
When
told that most beneficiaries have a choice of at least 40 drug plans,
two-thirds of seniors said the number of choices make the drug benefit
"confusing and difficult to pick the best plan," the poll finds
(Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 2/17).
About 21% said the number of choices "is helpful
and provides an opportunity to find the best plan," according to the
poll. By comparison, 73% of beneficiaries polled in October 2005 said
the number of choices is "confusing and difficult," while 22% said "it
is helpful" (Kaiser Family Foundation release, 2/17).
Obtaining Information
The poll also questioned beneficiaries on how they obtain information
about the drug benefit (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 2/17).
About 14% of seniors said they have used the
Medicare Web site to compare drug plans, either by themselves or with
help from a family member or friend (Wall Street Journal, 2/17).
Fewer than three in ten seniors say they have ever
gone online for any purpose.
About 14% of seniors said they have called the
government's toll-free phone line for assistance with the drug benefit,
and an additional 6% have had a friend or relative call on their behalf,
according to the poll (Kaiser Family Foundation release, 2/17).
Nearly
two-thirds of seniors said they trust a physician or pharmacist a lot to
help them understand the drug benefit (AP/Gainesville
Sun, 2/21).
| |
Current Impressions of Drug Program
click for larger view |
|
| |
 |
|
Comments
Drew Altman, president and CEO of Kaiser Family Foundation, said, "A
substantial number of beneficiaries are already enrolled, but a lot
turns on what those who are on the fence decide to do between now and
May 15."
Mollyann Brodie, a Kaiser Family Foundation vice
president and director of public opinion and media research, said, "The
plan finder at Medicare.gov is the best way to compare Medicare drug
plans, but relatively few beneficiaries and their helpers are using it
to date."
CMS spokesperson Gary Karr said, "The ultimate judge of the Medicare
drug coverage is whether people are enrolling or not." He said the poll
"confirms that we're going to do better than our enrollment
projections." Karr said the poll shows that Medicare must improve
outreach to beneficiaries who are undecided about enrolling in the drug
benefit (Reichard, CQ HealthBeat, 2/17).
 The
poll is available
online.
Medicare Advantage Enrollment
Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans has increased by 460,000 to a
total of five million since the drug benefit began on Jan. 1, CMS
officials said in a news release on Friday. CMS Administrator Mark
McClellan said increases in payments to MA plans under the 2003 Medicare
law has led to wider availability of MA plans. McClellan said
beneficiaries who enroll in MA plans will save $100 more monthly than
with other Medicare drug coverage (CQ HealthBeat [1], 2/17).
Low-Income Subsidy Enrollment
About 1.4 million low-income Medicare beneficiaries eligible for drug
benefit coverage with no premiums, no deductibles and copays of less
than $5 have enrolled in the program, "a fraction of the eight million
eligible," the
Washington Post reports.
Congress designated $500 million to the Social
Security Administration to identify beneficiaries eligible for the
low-income subsidy and enroll them in the drug benefit. Beneficiaries
qualify for the subsidy if their income is less than $19,000 but still
exceeds eligibility requirements for Medicaid.
To target the eligible beneficiaries, SSA has
purchased computer systems, hired 2,500 employees, contributed to 65,000
informational meetings and sent at least one letter to each of the 19
million beneficiaries who might qualify for the subsidy.
According to James Firman, president of the
National Council on the Aging, the agency targeted many ineligible
individuals and then spent a lot of time and money to process the
applications, ultimately rejecting about 70%. CMS Administrator Mark
McClellan acknowledged the difficulty of marketing to eligible
beneficiaries, saying, "Some people think it's too good to be true"
(Connolly, Washington Post, 2/21).
Letter
Reps. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) and Pete Stark (D-Calif.) on Friday
criticized a "views and estimates" letter issued by the
House Ways and Means Committee majority last week to outline its
agenda for the year, CQ HealthBeat reports.
According to CQ HealthBeat, the letter says that
Republicans will continue oversight of the 2003 Medicare law. In a
response letter, Rangel and Stark write that the committee had 59
hearings in the 109th Congress, including 14 on health care issues, and
none specifically addressing the drug benefit. Rangel and Stark write
that it is "embarrassing" that the committee "is failing to uphold its
duties" (CQ HealthBeat [2], 2/17).
Democrats
Congressional Democrats will hold more than 100 town meetings this week
to present their
proposals for changing the drug benefit and "capitalize on the
much-publicized problems" with the program ahead of midterm elections in
November, CQ Today reports. Democrats including Rep. John Dingell
(Mich.) and Sens. Richard Durbin (Ill.), Carl Levin (Mich.) and Debbie
Stabenow (Mich.) plan to discuss the drug benefit at town meetings over
the congressional recess.
Stabenow said Democrats will try to attach their
proposals to any eligible legislation and likely will address the agenda
in sections. Brendan Daly, spokesperson for House Minority Leader Nancy
Pelosi (D-Calif.), said Republicans "are concerned about this because we
did this on Social Security, and we defeated that." Rep. Deborah Pryce
(R-Ohio) said, "Instead of spending their recess unleashing scare
tactics ... Democrats could make better use of their time by signing up
more seniors for this benefit" (Schuler/Crowley, CQ Today, 2/17).
Frist and Boxer on 'Face the Nation'
In related news, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.)
acknowledged "confusion" and "all sorts of stumbles and glitches" with
the start of the drug benefit, but said he doesn't think the program
will be a "liability" for Republicans in the midterm election, the
AP/Detroit Free Press reports.
Appearing on CBS's "Face the Nation" on Sunday,
Frist said, "Of course it won't be a liability. I think it will be a
huge plus." Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), also appearing on the
program, disagreed, saying, "It's the privatization of Medicare, just as
[the Republicans] wanted to do with Social Security" (Lester, AP/Detroit
Free Press, 2/20).
Radio Address
In the Democrats' weekly radio address on Saturday, New Mexico Attorney
General Patricia Madrid said Congress should amend the drug benefit to
allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies
and permit beneficiaries to purchase drug coverage directly from
Medicare, the AP/Boston Herald reports. Madrid said, "[R]ather than
allowing Medicare to provide prescription drugs directly to seniors, the
Republican Congress invited the health insurance industry into the
process and wrote a needlessly complicated law" (AP/Boston Herald,
2/18).
State Reimbursements
In other Medicare news, 44 states and Washington, D.C., are expected to
receive reimbursement from the federal government for expenses incurred
in providing prescription drugs to dual eligibles who were unable to
obtain medications under the drug benefit, the AP/Owensboro
Messenger-Inquirer reports.
Medicare will reimburse the states for any
administrative costs, as well as any difference between what the states
paid for medications and what they were reimbursed by insurers who
sponsor Medicare drug plans. Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska
and South Carolina will not participate in the reimbursement program.
CMS officials said California, Massachusetts, New
Jersey and New York have incurred the highest expenses by covering
medications for dual eligibles. Most states have been paying for at most
only one or two prescriptions daily for each pharmacy in the state,
McClellan said (Freking, AP/Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer, 2/17).
Additional Coverage
●
New York Times: The Times on Sunday examined how the drug benefit
could "[p]aradoxically" become a "major vulnerability" for Republicans
among older voters in the November midterm elections, even though the
program "was intended to cement their loyalty" (Toner, New York Times,
2/19).
● Wall Street Journal: The Journal on Tuesday
examined how some beneficiaries have decided to not enroll in the drug
benefit because they believe "they can get a better or equal deal" by
"doing what they've always done" -- asking doctors for samples, buying
generics and ordering from pharmacies abroad (Fuhrmans, Wall Street
Journal, 2/21).
Broadcast Coverage
Several broadcast programs reported recently on the Medicare
prescription drug benefit:
 ABCNews'
"World
News Tonight": The segment reports on beneficiaries' confusion about
the benefit and includes comments from President Bush, Sen. Joseph
Lieberman (D-Conn.), political analyst Stuart Rothenberg and Medicare
beneficiaries ("World News Tonight," ABCNews, 2/19). The complete
segment is available
online.
CBS'
"Face
the Nation": In an interview on the program about several issues,
Frist discussed the prescription drug benefit (Schieffer, "Face the
Nation," CBS, 2/19). The complete transcript is available
online. A video excerpt of the segment is available
online in RealPlayer.
 NPR's
"Day
to Day": The segment reports on beneficiaries' confusion about prior
authorization for the benefit. The segment includes comments from
Jeffrey Kelman, CMO of the
Center for Beneficiary Choices in Medicare; and a Medicare
beneficiary and her physician about their experiences processing prior
authorization for medications (Silberner, "Day to Day," NPR, 2/20). The
complete segment is available
online in RealPlayer.
For the complete poll –
Click Here.
"Reprinted with
permission from kaisernetwork.org (insert hyperlink to http://www.kaisernetwork.org).
You can view the entire
Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, and sign up
for email delivery at
www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report is published for
kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family
Foundation. © 2006 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation.
All rights reserved.”
Click here to Search SeniorJournal.com for more on
this subject
Click to More Senior News on the
Front Page
Copyright: SeniorJournal.com |
