Medicare Drug Bills Assailed by Senator Clinton

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/11/nyregion/11HILL.html?ex=1066536000&en=e4904c696b688333&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE

MINEOLA, N.Y., Oct. 10 — The bills in Congress to add prescription drug coverage to Medicare would actually raise costs for millions of New Yorkers and result in poorer coverage for many of them, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said on Friday.

Though to many Americans Mrs. Clinton embodies the efforts to expand government-sponsored health coverage, she was one of just 11 Democrats to vote against the Medicare drug bill that the Senate passed in June. She said on Friday that she would oppose any bill that emerged from a House-Senate conference committee, unless the committee came up with a bill more generous than the ones already passed.

"Either version, the Senate or the House, would represent a net loss for most retirees," Mrs. Clinton said at a news conference with union leaders, local officials and Representative Timothy Bishop, Democrat of Suffolk County.

The bills' supporters have disputed some of the numbers behind these claims and conceded the validity of others. But they say that the argument misses the point: that the bills as drafted would be a net gain for Medicare recipients over all by providing significant relief to the people who need it most — those with very high drug costs.

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[papau]

1. I agree - the Senate sets up Medicaid to be killed - and the House

is just a tax gift to some insurance companies that need a Medical Savings Account tax break in order to sell folks on the idea of giving the insurance company their money.

Neither gives a good benefit - and the compromises made to get the bill this far are already too much. If the price of a good benefit - without the crappy "hole" where you have drug costs that get no relief - is the House Medical Savings tax break to their insurance company donners, that is fine - but it should not count against the $400 billion that was promised for the benefit.

And if there is a shred of "welfare" - that is easily cut by each state - rather than entitlement - they can take this bill and shove it. The idea to make the poor and old beg for the benefit through asking for state funding of Medicaid sucks.