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Clinton drug plan right prescription for Medicare?
June 27, 1999 WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, June 27) -- Previewing President Clinton's health reform proposals, administration officials said Sunday that all 39 million people covered by Medicare in the United States could obtain prescription drug benefits at "very little" cost to taxpayers.
Yet before the White House announces details of Clinton's Medicare reform package Tuesday, both Democratic and Republican congressional leaders said the plan was too far-reaching and recommended limiting new drug coverage to only the working poor. The elderly and disabled in the Medicare program who want the prescription coverage will have to pay for it, said Donna Shalala, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. The poor would receive assistance in purchasing the drugs. 
"This will not be as generous as people think," Shalala told CBS' "Face the Nation." "People will share in the costs, and it will have a limit on how much the government will pay for, and it will be very carefully designed so it doesn't spin out of control," she said. Shalala did not give details on how to fund the changes. But administration officials contend that universal drug coverage will save tax dollars by preventing serious illness in the elderly. Still, the White House, anticipating congressional opposition, has scaled back some of the proposed features in the Medicare package. Clinton backed away from an earlier proposal to charge Medicare recipients different premiums for prescription drug coverage based on income.
Lawmakers skepticalYet lawmakers on Capitol Hill remained skeptical about the Clinton plan. Sen. Phil Gramm, chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, said two-thirds of Medicare recipients already have prescription coverage, either through the Medicaid program for the poor or through private Medigap policies. That leaves about 15 million beneficiaries with no coverage. "I don't understand why we would want to drive those private programs out and substitute a government program for it," the Texas Republican said on CBS. It is "the working poor, the poorest of the poor not on Medicaid, who don't have it, and we ought to work that out some way," Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) said on NBC's "Meet the Press." Many GOP leaders have proposed offering government-subsidized drug benefits only to people near the poverty level. The administration argues Medigap policies are already a major financial burden for the elderly, averaging about $90 a month and often including a $250 deductible. Clinton's plan would require smaller premiums and might pay about half the cost of prescriptions, up to perhaps $3,000 to $5,000 a year.
Drug plan could be Clinton's last 'achievement'Sen. Bob Graham (D-Florida) said on CBS that cheaper drug prices could be accomplished by making Medicare more efficient and eliminating fraud and waste. Other Democrats were less optimistic. Sen. Robert Torricelli of New Jersey said increasing drug benefits is a possibility for that "one last national achievement" Clinton seeks before leaving office. But the plan for universal coverage "suffers an extensive reach," he said. Torricelli predicted prescription drug benefits will expand to include only those 15 million not currently covered and that Republicans will link Medicare reform to their highest priority, tax cuts. An estimated 76 million people will be eligible for Medicare over the next 30 years. Some predict the federal health program for retirees will go bankrupt in 15 years. To keep Medicare solvent, Clinton's plan proposes taking $700 billion from the budget surplus over the next 15 years. Correspondent Chris Black and The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
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