Leavitt stops in West Valley to plug drug benefit
Residents at senior apartments give HHS chief a big welcome
"People are saving a lot of money, more than they expected," said the former Utah governor, who was given a celebrity's welcome during his whirlwind stop at the Gearld L. Wright Villa Senior Apartments.
Enrollment for Medicare Part D began in November, and benefits started Jan. 1. The first three months have been rocky, however, with many seniors, especially low-income beneficiaries, unable to fill their prescriptions.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, have attributed the problems mainly to technical issues rather than larger, systemic problems.
"No logical person would expect that you can implement (a program of this size) and not have a few things that were not expected," Leavitt said Friday. "Things are improving, we are very optimistic."
Leavitt's Utah visit came on the heels of a call in Washington D.C. for the Government Accountability Office to investigate how the government can help low-income seniors navigate the new program. In a Thursday letter to the GAO, four members of the Senate Finance Committee, including Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, noted the difficulties those eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid have had transitioning into the plan.
The new prescription drug benefit plan was born out of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, which Hatch co-sponsored. It is the largest change to Medicare in its 40-year history.
So far, 129,000 of the 239,000 eligible Utahns have signed up for Medicare Part D. The program has 25 million enrollees nationwide.
Utahns eligible for coverage can choose between more than 50 plans, with costs ranging from about $6 per month with a $250 deductible and $70 per month with no deductible.
Marlene Butcher has already worked her way through three of those plans. She was on one she liked, but said she was encouraged to switch recently by a "fast-talking insurance man" who convinced her she could save money with his company. She now regrets the decision and feels foolish for letting herself be talked into something she didn't want.
"I've always been pretty sharp about things like that, (but) you just don't think as fast anymore," said the 73-year-old woman.
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