Posted At NewBritainHerald.com

BY : Scott Whipple

Speaking Tuesday at a news conference in the Legislative Office Building, Larson said seniors have told him the new Medicare prescription-drug plan is "hopelessly confusing."
"Seniors shouldn't have to be an actuary, an accountant and an attorney to fill out these forms," he said. "Six months is simply not enough time to make an informed choice. It's certainly not enough time to reach and counsel more than 42 million beneficiaries."

Medicare Part D, which is expected to cost $724 billion in the next decade, goes into effect Jan. 1. It relies on a network of private plans to deliver the drug benefit, and a multi-tiered subsidy program, to make it affordable to low-income Medicare beneficiaries. A criticism of the program has been its rapid implementation, requiring seniors in Connecticut and other states to make decisions without knowing key details about how the program works. Though participation in the new program is voluntary, current beneficiaries without prescription drug coverage face financial penalties if they fail to enroll by May 15, 2006.

State lawmakers and advocates for seniors and the disabled joined Larson to discuss how this bill, co-sponsored by U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3rd, and more than two dozen representatives from across the country, will correct what they say "are glaring deficiencies in the drug plan." They also hope to complement the General Assembly's efforts to prevent the state's low-income seniors and disabled from paying more for their medication.

Larson acknowledged that he voted against the Medicare Part D bill but said it was because of "its numerous inadequacies." However, he said he considers it an obligation to ensure that Medicare beneficiaries are provided the fullest protections and flexibility possible so they can take advantage of discounts available to them under the new plan.

With that goal, Larson's proposal, the Medicare Prescription Drug Flexibility For Seniors Act, would:

- Lengthen the open enrollment period to two years, giving beneficiaries until May 15, 2008, to choose to make the best choice for them. Penalties would be waived until June 1, 2008.

- Eliminate "one-sided lock-in." Medicare Part D plans can change the drugs on their formulary during the course of the year with 60 days' notice to plan members. Yet, beneficiaries are severely limited in their ability to change plans or opt out. The bill gives plan participants a 60-day window to change plans if the plan sponsor alters its formulary.

- Penalize retirement health plans that provide misleading information. Sponsors of beneficiaries' existing plans (such as those sponsored by employers or unions) are required to disclose whether they offer coverage comparable to that offered under Part D. Larson said this is critical information for seniors because delaying enrollment can lead to late enrollment penalties or unnecessary enrollment in a Part D plan. The bill includes a fine up to $10,000 for each false or misleading disclosure.

Enrollment began Nov. 15. Across the country, beneficiaries are confronted with up to 60 plans. In Connecticut, they must choose among 44 plans that differ vastly in premiums and co-payments, the number and types of drugs covered and participating pharmacies by May 15, 2008. After that time they will be assessed a lifetime late penalty in the form of higher monthly premiums to sign up. Some plans offer only drug coverage; others offer both medical and drug coverage.

Larson said he will persevere to replace the hodgepodge of plans with the program that should have been adopted in the first place; i.e., having the federal government negotiate discounts directly with pharmaceutical companies the way it does with the Department of Veterans Affairs.

"Seniors have been turned into refugees from their own health-care system," he said. "The prime beneficiaries of Medicare Part D are the pharmaceutical companies and insurers receiving taxpayer subsidies. Seniors and people with disabilities deserve a simple, straightforward program that delivers the deepest discounts possible. This impossibly convoluted system comes nowhere close. It's still cheaper for seniors to buy their drugs from Canada."

Larson said seniors shouldn't have to buy their drugs from a foreign country nor should they have to decide between essential prescriptions and heat for their homes or food.

Mike Karwan, director of New Britain's Senior Center, said his facility has hosted four seminars on the new Medicare drug plan. "All have been very well attended," he said. "There's been a lot of interest in the community on the part of seniors."