[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 46 (Tuesday, April 25, 2006)]
[House]
[Page H1713]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            MEDICARE PART D

  Mr. FITZPATRICK of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
to claim the time of the gentlewoman from Tennessee.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. FITZPATRICK of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, as we stand here on 
this Chamber floor, thousands of seniors in my district and millions 
across our country are suffering through piles of Medicare drug plan 
offers; and in far too many cases, these seniors are faced with a 
difficult dilemma. They are suffering under the weight of too much 
information, with too little time in which to make a choice on what 
drug plan they will use under the Medicare prescription drug program.

                              {time}  2015

  Their decision is by no means simple. The drug plans our seniors 
choose will define their health care options for years to come. If they 
do not make a decision and wait until the May 15 deadline passes, they 
will face penalties and higher prices for the drugs that they need.
  This week the Bucks County Courier Times, a daily paper in my 
district in Pennsylvania, mentioned the drug program dilemma faced by 
one senior. Mary Ann Morgan was fighting through the details and 
complications of the new program. She said, ``It's the same as if 
you're going to buy a stock. The fine print is hard to figure out.''
  Traditionally, Medicare's assurance has been that for the elderly and 
persons with disabilities that they will not be alone when confronted 
with the full burden of their health care costs. However, the Medicare 
prescription drug benefit has changed, and if the nearly 3,000 seniors 
I have met through 12 town halls can represent a sample of opinion, 
many seniors do not yet understand the prescription drug program and do 
not plan to sign up for coverage.
  Despite the administration's long public information campaign, for 
many months polls have consistently indicated only 37 percent of those 
eligible for Medicare say they only partially understand the program. 
Sixty-one percent state they simply do not understand the program. 
Approximately one in four seniors, 24 percent, say they plan to join 
the program, while 54 percent say they do not plan to join, and 22 
percent have no opinion.
  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services projected that 39.1 
million Medicare beneficiaries would have creditable prescription drug 
coverage for 2006. Of this total, HHS projected that 29.3 million 
beneficiaries would be enrolled in part D plans, and nearly 10 million 
beneficiaries would have creditable drug coverage under qualified plans 
such as employer- or union-sponsored plans.
  Mr. Speaker, the most recent enrollment figures released just last 
month indicate that only 19.7 million beneficiaries are enrolled in a 
Medicare part D prescription drug plan, a number that falls short of 
the hoped for estimate of 29.3 million. This rate of enrollment cannot 
be viewed as a success. Members of Congress must act to modify the 
original plan.
  Mr. Speaker, I contend that there is a simple solution to this 
problem. Our seniors need more time, and Congress should provide it to 
them. Congress changed Medicare to give our seniors more choice in what 
has historically been a highly structured government program. Congress 
cannot in good conscience allow thousands of seniors to suffer 
penalties simply because they could not make an informed decision for 
their health care coverage and do so in time.
  It is for these reasons that I introduced H.R. 4399, legislation that 
will extend the initial year's enrollment period an additional 6 
months, until November 14, 2006. My legislation would also extend the 
enrollment period for an additional 4\1/2\ months for all subsequent 
years. And, finally, under my legislation penalties would be suspended 
for 2 years when seniors enroll late in the program.
  I call on my colleagues to join as a cosponsor of H.R. 4399 to give 
Mary Ann Morgan and thousands of seniors like her more time to make the 
best use of the choice that they have been given.

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