Congressman John D. Dingell

Dearborn, MI - With just one week before seniors can begin enrolling in the Medicare discount card program, Congressman John Dingell (MI-15) warned seniors to read the fine print before signing up for the plan.

“I am more skeptical now than ever,” Dingell said.  “We have seen reports that the drug industry is raising its prices before the Medicare endorsed discount cards are even available.  I suppose this is intended to make you believe that the cards are providing a decent discount.  We believe that it is intended to ensure that the drug companies are still making a huge profit.”

Dingell made the comments during the Families USA Medicare Road Show in Taylor, where he and Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) explained to an audience of seniors some of the flaws in this plan which the Bush administration hailed as a solution to the nation’s growing concern about prescription drug prices.

Dingell pointed out five flaws in the Medicare discount cards which should make all buyers beware:

Ø      The cards do NOT guarantee any particular discount, despite previous claims they would offer discounts of 10 to 25 percent on the costs of your drugs.

Ø      There is NO guarantee buyers will continue to get a discount on the drugs they purchase after enrolling. 

Ø      There is NO guarantee that advertised discounts won’t change after buyers join the card. 

Ø      Buyers must watch which pharmacies they go to under the discount card. Different pharmacies will charge different prices at the register – even with any discount offered by the card.

Ø      There is NO guarantee that these new cards will give more savings than the other discount cards that exist today. And, for those who currently have some drug coverage – either as a retiree or perhaps through a state assistance program – that coverage still might be a better deal than these new cards. 

Dingell advised his audience to consult resources like the State Health Insurance Program or the Medicare Rights Center. Families USA will provide a prescription drug plan calculator where visitors to their website can compute the cost of their prescriptions.

At the time Congress was considering the prescription drug plan, the Bush administration reported it would cost an estimated $400 billion dollars. However, after the bill passed, other official estimates - which were apparently withheld from most Members of Congress - surfaced indicating the plan actually cost $546 billion. A Congressional committee is currently trying to determine why lawmakers did not receive information on the higher estimate in a timely manner.