Medicare Part D (for death and disaster); the forgotten Republican failure...

by: bluemcdowell

Mon Aug 20, 2007 at 00:28:56 AM EDT

Actually I now know that was just a big fat lie.  Medicare.gov first told me I wouldn't hit the "donut hole" at all.

But lately I have kept noticing my drug bills slowly rising the last two months.  That's when I first became suspicious. 

And my suspicions sadly were confirmed. Medicine that now costa me $71.86/mo. now will cost me $248.55/mo in December.  I have that money in my savings account but I didn't want to lose it except in a case of emergency, and for me a undifferentiated schizophrenic losing your medicine is an emergency and sadly perhaps even life-threatening.

And that's even questionable.  If I ever become physically sick and am prescribed medicine for let's say an irregular heartbeat that "donut hole" would take effect much earlier in October or November and could completely even wipe me out financially and perhaps even cost me my life believe it or not.

And most Medicare recipients are even worse off than I am.  The average date for disabled and older Americans hitting the "donut hole" has already passed....

But you don't hear any more news about Part D for the most part, or really any domestic and economic issues for that matter.  For two reasons:

The Iraq War and our "National Security." 

Everybody, liberal blogs and websites, the MSM, everyone of them, has forgotten about the destructive effects of this most "corporate welfare" of bills.

The pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies,  and their bought off leader George W. Bush are now officially prescribing medicine for millions of senior citizens and my fellow disabled citizens instead of our doctors.  They wrote this bill.  And of course the drug and insurance lobbyists slipped their drug company supporting friends a little bit of cash to seal the deal and make sure this bill would pass.

When I first heard about the possibility of a Medicare Prescription Drug Bill I was the happiest man on planet earth.  But then like the former presidential candidate Ross Perot famously said: 

The devil is in the details....

My happiest changed to sorrow just like that.

It really was sly and subtle how this all happened.  The House of Representatives actually voted down this bill many many times on that same very night before they passed it.  Fiscally conservative Republicans and moderately liberal Democrats formed a very unusual coalition aimed at stopping this bill.  The Democrats because of the drug and insurance companies' unprecendented role in writing this bill.  The fiscal conservatives because of the billion dollar price tag.

The Democrats stood their ground.  And for the most part so did the Republicans....

But of course there is always that "tiny few" that can easily be persuaded if promised something else.  The Republican leadership got these very tiny few Republicans at 3 AM at night and I even think it was even a Friday night at that when very few Americans were still awake to pass this bill after hounding them for hours and hours and hours.

And sadly these very same Republicans even today tell horrific stories of how the Republican leadership badgered them into passing this bill illegally.  It was really against federal law to do what they did.  But since Bush was president there was really nothing these Republicans could do to stop it.

And boy have we paid the price since then - for some of us.

Really there were two choices as far as  Medicare prescription drug coverage were concerned....

One exactly or similar to the Medicare Part B benefit.  You pay an annual deductible and after that receive 80/20 or something similar percent monthly costs with very little if any insurance or pharmaceutical input.  The one that me and 90 percent of Medicare recipients - even those that have actually benefited from the current Part D plan - yours truly included support 100 percent.

The other choice was what we have now: basically the American taxpayers subsidizing insurance and drug companies who didn't even need the extra money in the first place anyway. 

There are on average 50 or more different private plans in each state, all of them with steep deductibles per month, 75/25 for intial $2250 spent by both the company and the patient...

Stop right there...

Again a very intelligent move by the drug companies.  They not only count what you spend but they count what they spend as well.  Very very unethical but unfortuately they have a fellow unethical friend in the White House who was selected for his job instead of elected....

Then the recipients are required to pay 100 percent out-of-pocket with $0 in help at all from $2250 to $5100.  Full deductibles are still required by Part D recipients to be paid to the insurers.  Yet those same insurers don't even have to pay one penny in drug costs until total spending by the recipient and them reaches $5100.  Not even one doggone cent.  But  recipients are still required under Part D to pay 100 percent of their deductible.

Then after you and the drug companies have finally spent $5100 - which is a very significant amount for most Medicare recipients who have to live from check to check each and every month - you finally receive fantastic catastrophic coverage at 95 percent.

The crux of the matter though is that I say at least 2/3 and probably a lot more say 90 percent of Medicare Part D recipients don't even reach the $5100 paid out-of-pocket by them and their insurers.  Another crafty move by Big Pharma and the Bush administration....

Actually more people have actually benefited from this bill than haven't.  The poorest of poor recipients just pay $2 to $5 of month for each prescription.  However even some of them would later complain, and they had reason to.  Many Medicaid recipients were forced into a Medicare Part D plan without any warning at all.
And almost always it was worse than what they had paid with Medicaid.

As expected the wealthy people and those who are required to take a bunch of medicine to survive benefited greatly too.  But even then I say that at least 60 percent if not more of them were not rich at all and the ones who did reach catastrophic coverage only spent just a handful over the $5100 ceiling set by Congress.

And then sadly are those like me bluemcdowell who fell through the cracks.  And a large portion of Medicare recipients even more so.  Much more than Big Pharma and the insurance companies would like you to believe.

Before I was forced onto Part D I received two newer more effective medicines at $8/mo. because of Pfizer and Bristol-Myers patient assistance programs.  And I was doing absolutely fantastic with them.  They really helped me lead a better and more productive life.

Then Jan. 1, 2006 struck.  I actually managed to stay on those two medicines for a little while after that.  But in Feb. the day of reckoning finally came for me bluemcdowell....

I had to request my local clinic to change my medicine because Pfizer and Bristol-Myers each stripped me of my patient assistance program.  And the people at both drug companies were let's say very uncooperative at the very least, and that's being kind of me to even say that.

Now I have to take 5 different medications at a higher costs. 

More medicine  Older medicine.  Less effective medicine....

All at a much higher price.

Typical Bush and the Republican Party for you.  Pay more and receive less.  Unless you are one of Bush's millionaire and billionaire friends.  They actually pay less and receive more.  And they don't even need the extra cash in the 1st place....

The patient assistance programs at both drug companies' income limit was set at $19000/yr. or something similar.  I was $1000 below the limit at that time and was under that limit fairly easily. 

But under Part D the limit was much much lower:  at $11,245/yr. or something similar for the full lower-income subsidy and at $14,215 or something similar for the partially lower income subsidy.  And not only that there were asset limitations added on to it and I failed that requirement as well.

I currently get about $18000/yr.  Way below the drug companies guidelines but way too much for the Medicare Part D requirements for the lower and partial income aubsidies.  And I had too much money in my savings accounts too to quality for the subsidy.

Actually believe it or not the drug companies own guidelines were even more generous than Bush's and the Republicans.  But I now think the drug companies intended 100 percent to slap us lower and middle-income Medicare recipients in the face.  How cruel and heartless.

And there are date guidelines as well.  Miss those deadlines and you'll have to pay much much more out-of-pocket for your medicine.

Many many states have even been forced to declare health emergencies because of Part D.  Including Mike Huckabee - I mentioned him on here recently - of Arkansas.

And even Republican Huckabee has been one of Part D's most vocal critics in the past.

Republicans constantly tout many choices as to why they prefer this bill over a government-run or Medicare-similar drug program.  They say we Dems just give us one choice and that's it.

Well Republicans I'd rather prefer the Democrats' one great choice over your 50 to 100 bad Republican choices any day of the year....

And this just doesn't affect current Medicare recipients.  It affects many if not most  retired employees at many other different occupatiions as well.  Employers are now dropping their retiree's private prescription coverage like a rock because they can now save tons of money by forcing them onto Part D.

And where's the outrage of the American taxpayer?  Lower and middle income Americans are being forced to subsidize multi-billion dollar insurance and drug companies and they are saying absolutely nothing about it.

Richard Nixon started corporate welfare.  Ronald Reagan expanded it.  George W. Bush finished it.

Predictably insurance and pharmaceutical companies are enjoying record profits ever passing month of every year under Part D.  Money that they don't even need in the first place.

And now Medicare Part D recipients can even face prison time if they import drugs from Canada.  Many of them that were even manufactured in the United States in the 1st place....

Bush and the Republicans support free trade on every other product but life-saving medicine.

And since Bush has been in office he has also made it much more difficult to buy lesser expensive generic medicines and has greatly expanded the time by years big drug companies like Pfizer and Bristol-Myers can hold on to their patents and thus make it much easier and longer for Pfizer and Bristol-Myers to keep their medicines brand-name thus increasing their profits even more and thus making it much more difficult for lower-priced generic medicines to enter the marketplace.

Bush and the Republicans once again tout the "free market" in everything but life-saving medicine.  Unbelievable....

The pharmaceutical and insurance companies also can change and drop what medicines they cover at any time without having to tell part D beneficiaries, the amount of premiums and deductibles at any other time, and can even drop you from their plan completely.  Again they are not required to inform you of these changes beforehand.

I now can no longer go to my local mom and pop pharmacy since Wal-Mart's prices are way less expensive.  Many small mom and pop pharmacies are suffering big time financial losses and some have even been forced to close their doors forever because of part D.

In fact Wal-Mart pharmacists said I had the very best prescription plan they've seen.  And I checked up on it and they were 100 percent right on target.

And it's still much much worse than a Democratic 80/20 benefit, the "only" choice that Democrats offer.

Drug companies, George W. Bush, and the Republicans always use the "research and development" argument in defense of these high drug prices.  Under Part D drug companies can charge whatever they want, whenever they want, and wherever they want.

Actually "research and development" has stayed at the exact same level for most pharmaceutical companies if not declining - again in exchange for maklng much higher profits.

Medicare is also forbidden to negotiate drug prices under Part D while they are required to do for the veteran's administration.

And most if not all drug discount prescription cards are forbidden as well.

When you're forced to sign up for Medicare Part D,  afterwards It's really Part D and nothing else.  It's basic Part D coverage 99 percent of the time.  Not a penny less....

So much for the Republican Medicare Part D "choices."

And sadly because of all the attention the Iraqi War and the Republican Culture of Corruption has gotten Medicare Part D reform has sadly been placed on the back burner even by the US National Democratic Party and our Democratic presidential nominees... 

while common folks like me bluemcdowell are forced to suffer silently under the worst medical care bill ever passed in US history.

Very Very Sad yet Very Very True....