The Medicare Part D Liberal Lie

I am so ticked off today. I've been researching this Medicare Part D prescription plan. I've been hearing a lot of radio ads lately where these Liberal hack special interest groups have been advertising an ad where an old lady gives a $40 check to pay for her prescription and is told that she must pat FULL amount of $200. She exclaims that she has Medicare part D and has paid her premiums. She is then told that thanks to the Bush administration there are now HUGE GAPS in medicare Part D prescription coverage, and that to change that she should vote for change this November. BULLCRAP! Lets set the record straight. First of all, prior to January 2006 Medicare offered NO prescription coverage at all. NONE. Here is the evidence directly from the Medicare Web Page:

From the Medicare Web Page:

For the first time ever, everyone with Medicare, regardless of income, health status, or prescription drug usage, will have access to prescription drug coverage. This new coverage begins on January 1, 2006.

So Liberals would scare these people into thinking that the evil Bush administration is making their lives miserable. LIES. Before the Bush administration approved the changes, Medicare had NO prescription coverage at all. So Liberals want us to believe that Bush imposed a hardship by going from NOTHING to at least SOMETHING?

There is more.... If one was able to find this information, which is NOT easy for a reason, one would find that these gaps are RARE, and only occur under certain circumstances. This information was gleaned from a web site that helps the elderly with their medical decisions. This is what they had to say about this plan:

3. How does it work?
Individual enrollment into Medicare Part D began November 15, 2005 and will continue through May 15, 2006 without any additional late fee penalties. Individual Part D plans will vary significantly by insurer, but all health plans must offer a benefit that is financially equivalent to the “Standard Plan.”

In a “Standard Plan”, enrolled patients will pay a variable percent of their prescription drug costs — depending on how much they actually spend on prescription drugs. Patients who do not qualify for additional assistance pay a monthly premium (national average is $32/mo or $385 annually) to participate in the prescription drug coverage program. After a $250 deductible, patients pay 25% of the next $2000 in drug costs (or up to $500 in expenditures).
If patients spend more than $2250 in total drug costs, there is no insurance coverage for the next $2850 in drug costs. This is often called the “donut-hole” or “coverage gap” in the prescription drug program. Patients are expected to pay this amount out-of-pocket.
Lastly, after the additional $2850 in out-of-pocket costs, coverage resumes at a rate of 95%, with patients only paying 5% of remaining drug costs, unlimited until the end of the calendar year.

Most plans will not offer a standard plan. Rather, the vast majority of plans will use a co-pay structure similar to commercial prescription drug insurance. Further, many plans will not have an initial deductible and some will fill the donut hole with generics and in some cases branded medications. Several plans are available for under $10 per month while others cost more than $80 per month. Because the structures of all plans are significantly different (formularies, premiums, co-pays), individuals will need to compute what each plan means for them.

As you can see clearly by my highlights in red, I've exposed these Liberal scare tactics for what they are. It will be a very rare occurance for anyone to end up in the "Standard Plan" and therefore have to endure the Medi-Gap. I urge all elderly voters to please pass this information on to others and urge them NOT to fall for the Liberal lies and Vote to keep the Republicans in power as they are the ones who gave them something where previously there was NOTHING.