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US President George W. Bush
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THE PRESIDENT:
Good morning. Today I want to talk to you about the new Medicare
prescription drug coverage that went into effect on January 1st of this
year.
When I came into office, I found a Medicare system that was antiquated
and not meeting the needs of America's seniors. The system would pay tens
of thousands of dollars for a surgery, but not a few hundred dollars for
the prescription drugs that could have prevented the surgery in the first
place. So working with Congress, we passed critical legislation that
modernizes Medicare, provides seniors with more choices, and gives seniors
better access to the prescription drugs they need.
Since the
program went into effect six weeks ago, more than 24 million people with
Medicare now have prescription drug coverage, and hundreds of thousands
more are enrolling each week. The competition in the prescription drug
market has been stronger than expected and is lowering costs for taxpayers
and seniors alike. This year, the Federal government will spend 20 percent
less overall on the Medicare drug benefit than projected just last July.
The average premium that seniors pay is a third less than had been
expected -- just $25 per month, instead of $37 per month. And the typical
senior will end up spending about half of what they used to spend on
prescription drugs each year.
Last month in Oklahoma City, a senior named Dorothy Brown signed up for
Medicare prescription drug coverage. Dorothy has six prescriptions, and
previously she paid about $300 a month for her medicines. A Medicare
enrollment counselor at a shopping mall helped Dorothy log on to the
Medicare website, where she typed the information on Dorothy's Medicare
card and listed Dorothy's prescriptions. When the counselor was finished,
the computer showed five different plans that fit Dorothy's needs. Dorothy
chose the least-expensive plan -- and now, instead of paying $300 a month,
she will pay about $36 a month for her medicines. And as a result, Dorothy
will save more than $3,000 this year.
For Dorothy and for the vast majority of our seniors, the new
prescription drug program is working well. Still, when you make a big
change in a program involving millions of people, there are bound to be
some challenges, and this has been the case with the new drug coverage.
Some people had trouble the first time they went to the pharmacy after
enrolling. Information for some beneficiaries was not transferred smoothly
between Medicare, drug plans, and the states. And in the early days of the
drug coverage, waiting times were far too long for many customers and
pharmacists who called Medicare or their drug plans to seek help.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt has traveled to 18
states in the past three weeks to meet with governors and make sure the
prescription drug program is working for everyone, and we're making good
progress. We're ensuring that drug plans have more up-to-date information
on their beneficiaries, and we're improving data-sharing among Medicare,
health plans, and the states. We have also extended the transition period
from 30 days to 90 days, to guarantee that seniors do not go without the
medicine they need as they switch to a new drug plan. We have also acted
to ensure that phone calls to the Medicare help line are now answered with
little or no waiting time, and we're working with insurers to help them do
the same on their phone lines.
Despite early challenges, the results so far are clear: The new
Medicare prescription drug plan is a good deal for seniors. If you're a
Medicare recipient and have not yet signed up for prescription drug
coverage, I encourage you to review your options and choose the plan that
is right for you. Americans who have parents on Medicare should encourage
and help them to sign up. Citizen groups, faith-based organizations,
health professionals, and pharmacies across America are working to help
answer questions. Seniors can also get information 24 hours a day by
calling 1-800-MEDICARE or by visiting the official Medicare website at
Medicare.gov.
Prescription drug coverage under Medicare has been available for just a
few weeks, but its benefits will last for decades to come. I was proud to
sign this Medicare reform into law. And because we acted, millions of
American seniors are now saving money, getting the life-saving drugs they
need, and receiving the modern health care they deserve.
Thank you for listening. |
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