Press - Response to Bush Visit to CT

ADMINISTRATION URGED TO SUPPORT MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFIT FOR ALL:
PRESIDENT BUSH VISITS CONNECTICUT

June 12, 2003                                                              Contact: Judith Stein
                                                                          (860)456-7790
                                                                                                jstein@medicareadvocacy.org

In response to the President's remarks about Medicare at New Britain General Hospital today, Judith Stein, Executive Director of the Center for Medicare Advocacy states, "We continue to support a uniform, secure Medicare prescription drug benefit that is available to all beneficiaries. We hope the President does too."

"The premiums, co-payment responsibilities, and covered drugs should be set and should be identical in the traditional Medicare program and private Medicare plans," says Ms. Stein. "Because the Medicare managed care experience demonstrates that plan benefits, premiums, and availability will change over time, beneficiaries must be able to move fluidly between the traditional program and private plans and between different plans."

People with Medicare need to be able to know with certainty what is available and to easily compare options and make choices. The Center for Medicare Advocacy encourages the President and Congress to meet these concerns in Medicare prescription drug legislation.

The Center for Medicare Advocacy, Inc. is a national, non-partisan education and advocacy organization that identifies and promotes policy and advocacy solutions to ensure that elders and people with disabilities have access to Medicare and quality health care. The Center for Medicare Advocacy's national office is in Connecticut, with offices throughout the country, including in Washington, DC.