WASHINGTON - Seniors now can begin comparison shopping forMedicare-endorsed prescription drug discount cards, which supporterssay could save them as much as 25 percent on expensive medication.
Medicare beneficiaries can begin signing up for the cards Monday.On Thursday, the federal government began posting price comparisonsfor different cards on its Web site, www.medicare.gov. Similarinformation also is available by calling a toll free number.
'This is monumental,' said Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito,who has made the Medicare drug benefit a signature issue in Congress.'And this is just the beginning.'
But critics of the cards worry Medicare recipients will havetrouble navigating the mass of information to find the best card tofit their needs. And they say permitted price fluctuations couldresult in few savings for seniors.
Seventy-three cards have been given the green light by the federalCenter for Medicare and Medicaid Services. More than 100 companiesapplied to sponsor the cards. The sponsors obtain discounts andrebates from manufacturers and identify the local pharmacies thataccept their card.
West Virginia residents will be eligible for one of 40 nationalcards, while Northern Panhandle residents who are members of HealthPlan of the Upper Ohio Valley can receive that health plan's card.
The cards are good until Dec. 31, 2005, when the full-blownMedicare prescription drug benefit will be available.
Medicare beneficiaries without drug coverage pay among the highestprices for prescription medications, often 20 percent higher thanthose with coverage, according to a study by the Department of Healthand Human Services.
About 9 million Medicare beneficiaries don't have access toprescription drug coverage, and an estimated 7.3 million of them areexpected to sign up for the discount card, said Tim Trysla of theCenter for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
The card especially could be helpful for the one-third of WestVirginia Medicare beneficiaries who qualify for the low-incomeassistance. Those 110,000 recipients - who have individual incomesbelow $12,569 a year, or $16,862 for a couple - can apply to receive$600 in assistance and won't have to pay for their cards.
Several drug companies already have said they will offer theirmedications free or for a reduced price to low-income seniors whohave exhausted their $600 in pharmaceutical assistance, HealthSecretary Tommy Thompson said Thursday.
Ann Stottlemyer of the state Bureau of Senior Services saidsigning up for a card should be a no-brainer for low-income Medicarebeneficiaries who lack drug coverage.
'There's nothing to lose and everything to gain,' she said.
But Deane Beebe of the Medicare Rights Center said many seniorsmay receive more dramatic savings on prescription drugs throughveterans or military health programs, state drug plans or discountcards offered by pharmaceutical manufacturers or drug store chains.
Before Medicare recipients rush out to sign up for the Medicare-endorsed card, they also should check out savings provided throughInternet or mail order sites, including those from Canada.
'It's definitely look before you leap,' Beebe said.
In fact, a Charleston resident who takes the top-selling anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor would pay less by ordering the drug fromCanada. A 90-day supply of the drug cost $147 and $158 at two onlinepharmacies that sell prescription medications from Canada.
Using the Medicare discount, the beneficiary could fill the sameprescription at a local drug store for $184 to $207, depending on theparticular card.
West Virginia seniors will be able to retain their GoldenMountaineer drug discount card, but Stottlemyer said it's unclearwhat impact the Medicare cards could have on the state program.
'The question we have right now is how will the pharmacies react,'Stottlemyer said.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., said he is concerned that if drugstores do stop accepting the Golden Mountaineer card, West Virginiansbetween 60 and 65 years old could lose important discounts. Thoseindividuals qualify for the Golden Mountaineer card but are too youngfor Medicare.
Rockefeller, who supported alternative drug legislation, saidanother shortfall with the plan is that companies can increaseprices, perhaps on a weekly basis.
Once enrolled with a specific drug card, seniors will not be ableto switch for a year.
Medicare commissioner Mark McClellan said federal officials willmonitor prices to make certain there is no 'bait-and-switchbehavior.' Sponsors are allowed to increase prices only if there is achange in the price concessions they receive from manufacturers, hesaid.
And Thompson said the federal Web site will allow consumers tohave access to prices for 60,000 medications sold at 75,000pharmacies around the country, information that has never before beenavailable.
That information went online Thursday, allowing seniors todetermine the card that best suits their needs by enteringinformation about their prescriptions and location.
Similar information also is available by calling (800) MEDICARE.
The toll-free number is being manned around the clock. On Mondayalone, the center logged 112,000 calls, the most in Medicare'shistory, McClellan said.
Writer Karin Fischer can be reached at (202) 662-8732 or by e-mail at kfischer@dailymail.com.
