Spratt Calls for Extending the May 15th Deadline for Enrolling in Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage

Date: May 10, 2006
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Drugs


Spratt Calls for Extending the May 15th Deadline for Enrolling in Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage

U.S. Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) today joined his Democratic colleagues in Congress, calling for extension of the May 15 deadline to file for prescription drug coverage under Medicare.

I have held a host of town meetings to explain the coverage complications, and have talked with lots of folks who have called my office for help, said Spratt. My staff have dealt with even more, and they've been telling me since January of the problems people are facing.

Spratt said the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has just completed a study showing that the problems are hardly surprising. The GAO placed 500 calls to the 1-800-MEDICARE line operated by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The GAO found that the accuracy rate for calls concerning the drug plan that cost least for a certain beneficiary was 41%. In other words, the advice about specific plans was wrong 59% of the time. In 35% of the calls, the call center did not request enough information to identify the caller's best options. The GAO found CMS's instructions hard for many to understand; the wait time on telephone calls ranging up to an hour; and many mistakes.

What's at stake is just too complex and too vital to be subject to a short, arbitrary deadline, set by bureaucrats and insurance companies, especially since those who need the coverage most are among the most confused, Spratt said.

This is not a frantic, last-minute demand for help, said Spratt. H.R. 3861, which opens enrollment for all of 2006, was filed months ago, and I have long been a co-sponsor because I saw these complications coming.

According to CMS, only 72% of Medicare beneficiaries in the 5th District had prescription drug coverage as of May 7. The remaining 28% deserve more time to make a decision and make sure it's the right decision for them, Spratt said.

http://www.house.gov/list/press/sc05_spratt/medicare_rx_deadline.html

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