Colorado’s senior citizens apparently excel at the art of making a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. An impressive 436,966 signed up or were automatically enrolled for the new Medicare prescription drug benefit by the May 15 deadline, despite the confusion that accompanied the program’s roll-out.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) last week estimated 83 percent of Coloradans eligible for the benefit are now covered, well above the nation’s average of 77 percent. Colorado’s was the highest signup in the Western region, where other states ranged from 74 percent in Montana and Wyoming to 78 percent in Utah. Some 16,300 Coloradans signed up in the final week before the deadline. Eligible citizens who signed up after the deadline will face higher premiums of at least 1 percent a month.
Overall, HHS estimates about 38.2 million seniors now have prescription drug coverage, either through the new Medicare benefit or through their employer or other government programs. Most Medicare Rx beneficiaries were automatically signed up because they were already covered by employer-based benefits, private health plans or Medicaid. In Colorado, 104,383 opted for the stand-alone prescription drug plan and 139,929 for the broader Medicare Advantage plans. Some 46,312 converted from Medicaid to the new plan, 77,264 received subsidized plans and federal retirees in TRICARE and other plans accounted for 68,078 people.
Last week, the National Council on Aging called for intensified efforts to enroll an estimated 3 million beneficiaries in greatest need who are eligible for the low-income subsidy – and who comprise up to 75 percent of those who still do not have drug coverage.
Even if the remaining Americans eligible for the subsidized coverage can be brought into the program, American taxpayers remain saddled with an $800 billion 10-year cost for a program seemingly designed more to bolster the profits of pharmaceutical companies than to minister to the needs of seniors. The new law specifically forbade Medicare from using its bulk purchasing power to negotiate lower drug prices, though such discounts at the Department of Veterans Affairs has saved taxpayers billions.
A report by Public Citizen details how drug companies and HMOs deployed nearly 1,000 lobbyists to tailor the Medicare drug benefit to corporate profits rather than the needs of seniors. The result is that taxpayers are paying too much while seniors get too little.
