[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 14244]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        MEDICARE MODERNIZATION AND PRESCRIPTION DRUG ACT OF 2002

  (Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, it is time to provide 
prescription drugs for our senior citizens. It is time to stop fussing 
and discussing and get down to business.
  We just passed recently in this House a Medicare Modernization and 
Prescription Drug Act of 2002. This Act provides immediate relief from 
high drug costs with prescription drug discount cards and immediately 
implements a program to assist low income beneficiaries with their 
costs. It supplies significant front-end coverage of drug costs from 
government coverage. 80 percent paid on the first $1,000. It saves 
seniors more on their drug costs than any other bill in Congress. It 
lowers pharmaceutical manufacturing drug prices by $18 billion with 
best price provisions, offers catastrophic protection, 100 percent 
coverage after $3,700 in drug costs, and it covers all costs except 
nominal co-pays for low income seniors up to 175 percent of poverty.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time that the two bodies come together and provide 
our senior citizens with prescription drug coverage. Now is the time. 
Today is the day and we should do it before this year is out.

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