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Skriven 2006-02-11 23:33:10 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (060211) for Sat, 2006 Feb 11
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President's Radio Address
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For Immediate Release
February 11, 2006

President's Radio Address


ÿÿÿÿÿAudio
ÿÿÿÿÿIn Focus: Medicare
ÿÿÿÿÿ

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Today I want to talk to you about the new
Medicare prescription drug coverage that went into effect on January 1st of
this year.

When I came into office, I found a Medicare system that was antiquated and
not meeting the needs of America's seniors. The system would pay tens of
thousands of dollars for a surgery, but not a few hundred dollars for the
prescription drugs that could have prevented the surgery in the first
place. So working with Congress, we passed critical legislation that
modernizes Medicare, provides seniors with more choices, and gives seniors
better access to the prescription drugs they need.

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Since the program went into effect six weeks ago, more than 24 million
people with Medicare now have prescription drug coverage, and hundreds of
thousands more are enrolling each week. The competition in the prescription
drug market has been stronger than expected and is lowering costs for
taxpayers and seniors alike. This year, the Federal government will spend
20 percent less overall on the Medicare drug benefit than projected just
last July. The average premium that seniors pay is a third less than had
been expected -- just $25 per month, instead of $37 per month. And the
typical senior will end up spending about half of what they used to spend
on prescription drugs each year.

Last month in Oklahoma City, a senior named Dorothy Brown signed up for
Medicare prescription drug coverage. Dorothy has six prescriptions, and
previously she paid about $300 a month for her medicines. A Medicare
enrollment counselor at a shopping mall helped Dorothy log on to the
Medicare website, where she typed the information on Dorothy's Medicare
card and listed Dorothy's prescriptions. When the counselor was finished,
the computer showed five different plans that fit Dorothy's needs. Dorothy
chose the least-expensive plan -- and now, instead of paying $300 a month,
she will pay about $36 a month for her medicines. And as a result, Dorothy
will save more than $3,000 this year.

For Dorothy and for the vast majority of our seniors, the new prescription
drug program is working well. Still, when you make a big change in a
program involving millions of people, there are bound to be some
challenges, and this has been the case with the new drug coverage. Some
people had trouble the first time they went to the pharmacy after
enrolling. Information for some beneficiaries was not transferred smoothly
between Medicare, drug plans, and the states. And in the early days of the
drug coverage, waiting times were far too long for many customers and
pharmacists who called Medicare or their drug plans to seek help.

Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt has traveled to 18
states in the past three weeks to meet with governors and make sure the
prescription drug program is working for everyone, and we're making good
progress. We're ensuring that drug plans have more up-to-date information
on their beneficiaries, and we're improving data-sharing among Medicare,
health plans, and the states. We have also extended the transition period
from 30 days to 90 days, to guarantee that seniors do not go without the
medicine they need as they switch to a new drug plan. We have also acted to
ensure that phone calls to the Medicare help line are now answered with
little or no waiting time, and we're working with insurers to help them do
the same on their phone lines.

Despite early challenges, the results so far are clear: The new Medicare
prescription drug plan is a good deal for seniors. If you're a Medicare
recipient and have not yet signed up for prescription drug coverage, I
encourage you to review your options and choose the plan that is right for
you. Americans who have parents on Medicare should encourage and help them
to sign up. Citizen groups, faith-based organizations, health
professionals, and pharmacies across America are working to help answer
questions. Seniors can also get information 24 hours a day by calling
1-800-MEDICARE or by visiting the official Medicare website at
Medicare.gov.

Prescription drug coverage under Medicare has been available for just a few
weeks, but its benefits will last for decades to come. I was proud to sign
this Medicare reform into law. And because we acted, millions of American
seniors are now saving money, getting the life-saving drugs they need, and
receiving the modern health care they deserve.

Thank you for listening.
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http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/02/20060211.html

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