[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 124 (Thursday, September 29, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10747-S10748]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CORZINE (for himself, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Lautenberg, and Ms. 
        Stabenow):
  S. 1798. A bill to amend titles XI and XVIII of the Social Security 
Act to prohibit outbound call telemarketing to individuals eligible to 
receive benefits under title XVIII of such Act; to the Committee on 
Finance.
  Mr. CORZINE. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation, 
the Medicare Do Not Call Act, to prohibit private insurance companies 
from telemarketing their Medicare prescription drug and Medicare 
Advantage plans to Medicare beneficiaries. I am very pleased to be 
introducing this bill along with my colleagues, Senators Johnson and 
Lautenberg. I thank my colleagues for their support of this important 
legislation.
  Beginning this Saturday, October 1, private insurance plans offering 
Medicare prescription drug coverage will begin marketing their products 
to Medicare beneficiaries.
  Depending on which Medicare region they live in, beneficiaries will 
be confronted with selecting from as many as 20 stand-alone 
prescription different plans. In New Jersey, beneficiaries will choose 
among 17 different plans. Under current law, these plans can both send 
mail to and call seniors and people with disabilities who are eligible 
to enroll in the Medicare Part D benefit. As a result, in addition to 
being flooded with mail, our seniors and disabled will be flooded with 
phone calls.
  I am extremely concerned that permitting plans to telemarket creates 
great potential for unscrupulous individuals and businesses to defraud 
this vulnerable population. Even if the plans themselves are honest 
brokers, it may be difficult for a senior or disabled beneficiary to 
distinguish between who is honest and who is not.
  I am very concerned that such individuals may seize the opportunity 
to take advantage of this vulnerable population. Unless we act now, 
there will be an endless potential for fraud and identity theft within 
the Medicare Part D plan.
  Beneficiaries are already confused about what their rights are with 
respect to the new prescription drug benefit. A senior who is told that 
she must provide her Social Security or credit card number to a 
telemarketer in order to obtain Medicare prescription drug coverage may 
feel compelled to do so, lest she forgo her opportunity to obtain 
prescription drug coverage.
  Concerns about telemarketing fraud against seniors are very real. The 
Department of Justice estimates that telemarketing crooks cheat one out 
of six consumers every year, resulting in costs to Americans of $40 
billion a year. Americans over 65, our Nation's seniors, are the 
primary target of these scams.
  At a time when identity theft is at an all time high, the Federal 
government should take every precaution available to protect the 
American public. We should not permit government-sponsored programs, 
such as the Medicare prescription drug program, to engage in 
telemarketing. The best way to prevent such fraud from occurring is to 
prohibit telemarketing of any and all Medicare sponsored prescription 
drug products. The Medicare Do Not Call Act will do just that. My 
legislation imposes serious criminal penalties on unscrupulous 
individuals and companies that seek to defraud Medicare beneficiaries 
through telemarketing appeals. We must do everything we can to protect 
this vulnerable population.
  The bottom line is that telemarketing simply is not necessary to 
educate seniors about their prescription drug options. My legislation 
permits insurance companies who are contacted by beneficiaries to 
discuss plan options with them. As beneficiaries talk to trusted 
friends and organizations and read over the literature about the 
different drugs plans, they can then contact plans to discuss their 
options further. My legislation does not stop beneficiaries from 
speaking to these companies; it simply prohibits these companies from 
making the initial `cold call' to beneficiaries.
  I deeply believe that the Federal government has a responsibility to 
do everything in its power to prevent telemarketing fraud. Permitting 
drug plans to telemarket to seniors and people with disabilities may 
provide a source of information to these individuals; however, because 
each plan wants to sell their own products, telemarketers may not 
provide the most objective information about a beneficiary's options.
  There are better ways to educate seniors and disabled about the 
prescription drug benefit. The Medicare Do Not Call Act provides 
additional resources--$2 per Medicare beneficiary--to the State Health 
Insurance Counseling and Assistance Programs (SHIPs) to provide 
counseling and enrollment assistance services to Medicare 
beneficiaries. SHIPs provide valuable objective information to 
beneficiaries and can provide tremendous assistance in helping 
beneficiaries select the plan that best suits their needs.
  I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
legislation. By prohibiting these un-invited calls we can protect 
seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries from fraudulent intentions and 
ensure that this complicated transition within the Medicare program be 
as straightforward, and safe, as possible.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the legislation be printed 
in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1798

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Medicare Do Not Call Act''.

     SEC. 2. TELEMARKETING PROHIBITED.

       (a) Prescription Drug Plans.--Section 1860D-4(a) of the 
     Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-l04(a)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(5) Prohibition on telemarketing.--
       ``(A) In general.--A PDP sponsor offering a prescription 
     drug plan shall be prohibited from conducting outbound call 
     telemarketing (as defined in subparagraph (B)) for the 
     purpose of soliciting enrollment into such a plan under this 
     part.
       ``(B) Outbound call telemarketing defined.--
       ``(i) In general.--Except as provided in clause (ii), for 
     purposes of this paragraph, the term `outbound call 
     telemarketing' means a telephone call initiated by a 
     telemarketer--
       ``(I) to induce the purchase of goods or services; or
       ``(II) to solicit a charitable contribution.
       ``(ii) Catalog mailings not included in definition of 
     outbound call telemarketing.--Such term does not include--
       ``(I) the mailing of a catalog; or
       ``(II) the receipt or return of a telephone call initiated 
     by a customer in response to such mailing.''.
       (b) Medicare Advantage Organizations.--Section 1851(h) of 
     the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395w-21(h)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(6) Prohibition on telemarketing.--A Medicare Advantage 
     organization offering a Medicare Advantage plan shall be 
     prohibited from conducting outbound call telemarketing (as 
     defined in section 1860D-4(a)(5)(B)) for the purpose of 
     soliciting enrollment into such a plan under this part.''.
       (c) Criminal Penalties for Fraudulent Telemarketing.--
     Section 1128B of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b) 
     is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(g) Whoever knowingly and willfully engages in deceptive 
     or abusive telemarketing acts or practices (as defined in 
     part 310.3 and part 310.4, respectively, of title 16, Code of 
     Federal Regulations), or makes any false statement or 
     representation of a material fact while conducting outbound 
     call telemarketing (as defined in section 1860D-4(a)(5)(B)) 
     with respect to a prescription drug plan offered by a PDP 
     sponsor under part D of title XVIII, a Medicare Advantage 
     plan offered by a Medicare Advantage organization under part 
     C of such title, or who falsely alleges to be conducting 
     outbound call telemarketing (as so defined) with respect to 
     either such a plan, shall be guilty of a felony and upon 
     conviction thereof shall be fined not more than $25,000 or 
     imprisoned for not more than five years, or both.''.
       (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section 
     shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 3. INCREASED FUNDING FOR STATE HEALTH INSURANCE 
                   COUNSELING AND ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

       (a) In General.--There are hereby appropriated to the 
     Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this Act referred 
     to as the ``Secretary'') an amount equal to $2 multiplied by 
     the total number of individuals eligible for benefits under 
     title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et 
     seq.). Such funds shall--
       (1) be used by the Secretary to award grants to States 
     under section 4360 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 
     of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 1395b-4); and
       (2) remain available until expended.
       (b) Allocation of Grant Funds.--The Secretary shall ensure 
     that funds appropriated under this section are allocated to 
     States in an amount equal to the proportion of the number of 
     residents in the State that are eligible for benefits under 
     title XVIII of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et 
     seq.) in

[[Page S10748]]

     relation to the total number of individuals eligible for such 
     benefits under such title.

     SEC. 4. INFORMING BENEFICIARIES OF THE HHS TIPS HOT-LINE.

       The Secretary shall take appropriate measures to inform 
     individuals eligible for benefits under title XVIII of the 
     Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) of the 
     availability and confidentiality of the hotline maintained , 
     by the Inspector General of the Department of Health and 
     Human Services for the reporting of fraud, waste, and I abuse 
     in the medicare program.
                                 ______