Leaders call to extend drug plan deadline

The Capital Times
May 8, 2006

Three of Wisconsin's top elected officials called today for an extension of the enrollment deadline for the Medicare Part D prescription drug program.

The current deadline is May 15, and those who do not enroll by then face penalties in the form of permanently increased premiums.

Gov. Jim Doyle, U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, and U.S. Rep. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, planned a press conference today to urge Congress to extend the deadline.

Kind and Baldwin are among co-sponsors of a bill that would extend the enrollment deadline and give enrollees an opportunity to change prescription drug plans once during 2006, if the plan they chose did not suit their needs. But Kind said the bill is stalled in the Ways and Means Committee.

Last week, the Government Accountability Office found that information provided by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services about the Part D program in handbooks, on a Web site and through a Medicare hotline was not "consistently clear, complete, accurate and usable."

"It's no wonder millions of seniors are frustrated and confused," said Baldwin, who has previously said the Part D plan benefits drug and insurance companies instead of low-income and elderly people who need medication.

"The report confirms what I've heard from constituents in listening sessions I've held recently throughout south-central Wisconsin - that when you call the Medicare hotline, you wait and wait, only then to get incomplete or inaccurate information," she said in a written statement.

Baldwin praised Doyle for negotiating successfully with the federal government to retain the state's SeniorCare program as an option for drug coverage and to allow SeniorCare to continue through at least June 2007.

Kind said in a phone interview this morning that the press conference also was intended to make sure people know about the deadline, which is a week from today.

"It is important to sign up so they don't get hit with a 7 percent penalty," Kind said. "They would be charged a 1 percent penalty for each month they delay, but the next enrollment period doesn't open until the end of the year. So that would be a seven-month closed enrollment period. If or when they do sign up, that becomes a permanent fee attached to each monthly premium. You're talking a real chunk of change."

Kind also urged Wisconsin's elderly to sign up for SeniorCare as the best alternative. "One thing I tell them is to pay the $30 fee to enter SeniorCare, so they will not face penalties," he said. "And for a lot of people, that would be the best plan."

Doyle termed the May 15 deadline "the latest disaster waiting to happen."

"Instead of providing affordable access to prescription drugs, Medicare Part D became a disorganized, confusing ordeal for many Wisconsin seniors," Doyle said in a written statement. "Fortunately, Wisconsin families had access to SeniorCare."

Enrollment in SeniorCare has surged by about 15,000 to more than 100,000 beneficiaries over the last year, as dissatisfaction with the Part D program grew. Applications to the program increased from an average of 68 applications per day to 243 applications per day, officials said.

SeniorCare is a program for people age 65 and older. Co-pays and deductibles are based on a person's annual income, not including assets such as savings and home property. The annual fee is $30.

MORE INFORMATION

• Prescription drugs: Here are some places to call to learn more about Medicare Part D and Wisconsin's SeniorCare program:

• Wisconsin Medicaid Recipient Services: 800-362-3002

• Medicare federal hotline: 800-MEDICARE or www.medicare.gov

• Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups: The coalition's Elder Law Center prescription drug help line for Medicare recipients ages 60 and older can be reached at 866-456-8211.

• Wisconsin Coalition for Advocacy: Their disability drug benefit help line for people under 60 who receive Medicare because of a disability can be reached at 800-926-4862.

• Wisconsin SeniorCare hotline: 800-657-2038

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