[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 14 (Wednesday, February 8, 2006)]
[House]
[Page H162]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   MEDICARE PART D AND THE DONUT HOLE

  (Mr. DeFAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Well, the gentlewoman was energized in talking to her 
constituents and encouraged by it, but I guess she didn't talk to any 
seniors about Medicare part D.
  I have the unfortunate privilege of probably representing the first 
victim in the United States of America of the so-called donut hole. You 
don't know what the donut hole is? They wanted to pretend that you 
could preclude Medicare from negotiating lower drug prices, subsidize 
the pharmaceutical and insurance industries, and do all this for $400 
billion. Of course, it turns out it will be more like $800 billion; but 
in order to get there, they had to create this weird construct. After 
you pay your payments, your premiums, and all that, you get to a 
certain point, around $2,000 or so, where you have to pay everything 
for the next $2,850.
  This constituent doesn't have $2,850. The pharmaceutical companies 
eliminated the compassionate drug programs because they said, hey, 
these people can get this great Federal benefit. This means, in all 
likelihood, if we can't get this woman some help, she will die. 
Medicare part D. I guess she didn't talk to her constituents about 
that.

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