January, 2007

Dear Gray Panther Activist:

On January 1, 2006, Medicare started to provide private prescription drug insurance policies to beneficiaries under Part D, Although administration and industry mouthpieces claim success because not everyone is complaining, the truth is that Medicare Part D is an needlessly complex system fraught with problems. While Medicare Part D benefits drug and health insurance companies, its problems will affect up to 40 million older and disabled persons now and will affect every American in the future. And while Gray Panthers, an intergenerational peace and justice organization, supports a comprehensive health care and prescription drug benefit for all people, we request your help in letting Congress know that the Medicare Part D prescription drug program is seriously flawed and needs to be reformed.

The enclosed “donut hole” post cards illustrate that, under Medicare Part D, drug companies (represented by their lobbying organization, PhRMA - the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America) are big winners. As the Medicare Prescription Drug scheme is clattering toward its second year, we’re beginning to see the results. Many of us know first-hand what life in the Medicare “donut hole” is really like.

The “Donut Hole” is the feature of Medicare Part D that stops coverage after the first $2,250 of drug expenses, and resumes coverage only after individuals have spent at least $5100 during the year. Those living in the Donut Hole, although they are demonstrably in ill health, must continue to pay premiums in addition to prescription expenses. Only drug companies and private insurers could love this plan! And, beneficiaries must stick with their initial choice of ‘plan’ until an ‘open season’ even if their medication needs change and their new prescriptions are not covered. Insult and injury abound!

The new Congress is talking about negotiating with drug companies but that is not enough! Gray Panthers activists around the country are sending these post cards to Congress to emphasize the need for comprehensive Medicare Part D reform. We urge you to send postcards to your U.S. Senators and Representative in the next few weeks and let them know you are watching their voting records and are holding them accountable to their elected office.

We have outlined below sample messages for your postcards with background information for you.

SAMPLE MESSAGES AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION GRAY PANTHERS DONUT HOLE CAMPAIGN

SAMPLE MESSAGE #1

We demand Congress immediately eliminate the donut hold before it gets any bigger and that the administration negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies to lower Part D expenditures. Support Part D Reform now.

Background Information

The donut hole will get bigger and bigger each year and enrollees will pay more and more out of pocket. The law needs to be fully funded and costs contained through negotiation and in other ways.

The Kaiser Family Foundation projects that nearly 7 million Part D participants will fall into the “Donut Hole” in 2006. Many beneficiaries have already done so and may see their out-of-pocket expenditures rise compared to before the law.

Currently, Medicare is prohibited to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies. However, using its purchasing power as leverage, the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs and even the Department of Health and Human Services currently negotiate significant discounts from the industry!

SAMPLE MESSAGE #2

We demand the Congress protect voters, the people they were elected to serve, not PhRMA. Work to change the law to hold prescription costs down AND to close the donut hole. Support Part D Reform now.

Background Information

According to a new study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 77% of prescription drug plan enrollees will pay higher premiums in 2007 if they remain in the plans in which they are currently enrolled.

SAMPLE MESSAGE # 3

We demand Congress immediately eliminate all late enrollment penalties in the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan law. Don’t punish Medicare beneficiaries for taking the necessary time to make these important decisions! Congress also needs to investigate the on-the-ground impact of these penalties, which are cumulative and permanent. Support Part D Reform now.

Background Information

40 million Medicare beneficiaries or their guardians needed time to carefully review available and complicated Prescription Drug Plans before the first open enrollment in May, 2006. Every year in the future over 2 million new beneficiaries will need to determine how to participate in Part D. Part D participation decisions remain complex and time consuming. Even for those beneficiaries currently enrolled in part D, the plan names may stay the same but policies will change from year to year and beneficiaries will continue to be assessed penalties if they register beyond the deadline provided by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

SAMPLE MESSAGE # 4

We demand Congress protect the benefits we are paying for. Make insurers keep the coverage they advertise when we enroll until the next open enrollment period. Immediately prohibit Prescription Drug Plans changing their benefits during the plan year! Support Part D Reform now.

Background Information

Current law allows for Prescription Drug Plans to change their formularies and prices during the plan year, but prevents beneficiaries from switching plans. Congress should correct this inequity with legislation to:

1. Prohibit or limit plans changing their benefits during a plan year.
2. Require plans to notify beneficiaries within 30 days of any plan change.
3. Allow beneficiaries to change their plans without penalty every time their plan changes.

Note: For those networks/activists who want to continue to concentrate on universal healthcare and tie it into Medicare, you can send a message to Congress to support HR 676. United States National Health Insurance Act (or the Expanded and Improved Medicare for All Act). Our health care system is the most expensive in the world yet it is ranked 37th (after Costa Rica) by the World Health Organization in overall performance. The U.S. spends 24% of its health care dollars on administration – twice that of countries which cover all their people. A single payer system will provide effective solutions to Americans’ health care needs.