Medicare Part D

I think it’s time that Minnesota seniors make an effort to communicate with AARP. The reason being I don’t think President Bush would have been able to get Medicare Part D for drugs passed through the legislature the way it is organized at this time without AARP’s support. Because the 48 insurance companies that now write Medicare Part D in Minnesota, by law cannot negotiate with a drug manufacturer, many of us reach the donut hole where we are paying 150-200 percent more than the price the product is probably being sold to the Veteran’s Administration or other institutions. We are being held up and discriminated against as we are paying more than others who can negotiate.

This bill would have never passed in the way that it did without AARP backing. Before the law, we bought drugs where we wanted and our insurance paid 50 percent of what we paid, and that was certainly less than what we pay now.

How many seniors are aware that the donut hole starts when $2,510 at present retail pricing is spent between the insurance and the consumer? I doubt many do unless they’ve reached the donut hole, and it’s a sudden surprise. The way the sales literature is written, most seniors think the $2,510 is what the senior is going to pay to reach the donut hole, which if true would be a long way off.

I also doubt that Republicans that passed this bill, because Bush told them to, realized what they were passing because it seems few of the legislators read the bill and, of course, when they can go to any government hospital and get drugs at no charge, why should they?

The only way this is going to be resolved is if AARP gets on our side. I have already quit paying dues to AARP and am no longer a member. If a number of seniors throughout the country would do the same, I’m sure AARP  would be concerned and join our side.
Arthur Stone, St. Paul

Editor’s note: In 2009 the Part D annual coverage gap (donut hole) level was raised. The gap starts after the total cost of drugs reaches $2,700. (This is the combined payment by the insurance company and the enrollee.) To get out of the donut hole, the enrollee must pay all of the drug costs out of pocket until costs reach $4,350. After that, there’s catastrophic coverage, in which there’s a small co-payment for each drug until the end of the year.