Part D Editorial Missed Big Problem: Multiple Enrollment
Posted on: Tuesday, 21 March 2006, 03:02 CST
The recent Palm Beach Post editorial, "Fix patient, not the PR" (Feb. 27) highlighted problems with Medicare Part D, the prescription-drug plan that has caused havoc for many elderly citizens. It states that countless seniors have been denied valid prescriptions and been forced to pay more than they should have for their drugs; emergency aid from states, including Florida, to cover costs that Part D should have covered but didn't has affected numerous seriously ill seniors; and it is difficult to comprehend.
The editorial also notes that Congress has failed to enact changes and that rather than fix Part D, the Bush administration spews misleading happy talk about enrollment. What the editorial failed to mention was that tens of thousands of beneficiaries find themselves enrolled in two prescription-drug plans, putting patients at risk of being charged two premiums or incorrect co-payments.
In a recent memorandum to insurers, the Bush administration acknowledged that "many (possibly all) of the beneficiaries who switched plans are active on enrollment files at multiple plans" and that "our processing systems have not always sent the enrollment and disenrollment information to the appropriate plans." James M. Maister, a pharmacist in Lutz, north of Tampa, said that in some cases involving Medicare patients enrolled in two plans, "both plans have automatic deductions scheduled from the patient's Social Security check." Health-care providers in Florida have alerted federal officials because they worried that unscrupulous pharmacists might submit duplicate claims for the same prescription.
It appears clear that the elected officials, as well as AARP, who voted in favor of this Medicare program gave little concern to constituents' needs and instead used it to benefit the pharmaceutical companies and insurers.
JEWEL LITTENBERG
Atlantis
Source: Palm Beach Post
Related Articles
- DestinationRx Launches Medicare Part D Comparison Tool to Help Seniors During 2009 Medicare Open Enrollment Season
- Major Expansion News: ARTA MEDICARE(TM), Orange County's Innovative Boutique MA-PD Plan, Launches 2008 Plans for Medicare and Medicare/Medi-Cal Beneficiaries
- Lexington Doctors Launch Unique New Health Plan for Medicare Patients
- Louisville Doctors Launch Unique New Health Plan for Medicare Patients
- Seattle Doctors Launch Unique New Health Plan for Medicare Patients
- Medica Introduces Health Plans for Medicare Beneficiaries With Special Needs
- More Than 189,500 MD Residents Enroll in Prescription Drug Plans Through Medicare
- Medicare Mess ; New Drug Plans: Prescription for Confusion
- Statement of Former U.S. Senator Breaux on CMS' Announcement ofMedicare Prescription Drug Benefit Enrollment Numbers
- AvMed To Offer Medicare Prescription Drug Plan to Medicare Beneficiaries; Health Plan Offers Additional Help to Medicare Recipients in Dade and Broward Counties
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds