| WASHINGTON,
D.C. – U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) today said, “I know a
real senior group when I see one, and United Seniors Association is no
senior organization.” Schakowsky joined Senators and House members
to expose the truth about United Seniors Organization, a group that has
received at least $4.6 million from the pharmaceutical industry and is
currently running television advertisements in key Congressional districts
in support of the House-passed Republican prescription drug bill that was
written by the drug companies.
Below
is Schakowsky’s statement:
I
have spent my career working with seniors, senior groups, and grassroots
organizers in Chicago, Illinois, and throughout the country. I was
the Executive Director of the Illinois Council of Senior Citizens.
I know a real senior group when I see one, and United Seniors Association
is no senior organization.
Real
senior groups like the Alliance for Retired Americans don’t air lies on
television. Real senior groups like the National council on Aging don’t
support sham prescription drug bills. Real senior groups like the Center
on Medicare Advocacy don’t’ make seniors buy private insurance policies
to cover drugs. They support an affordable and voluntary benefit
under Medicare.
Real
senior groups like the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and
Medicare don’s support plans where seniors would have to pay thousands
of dollars out of their own pockets. Real senior groups like the National
Council on the Aging don’t want their members to travel to Canada for affordable
drugs. Real senior groups like the Older Women’s League believe that
seniors should get the drugs their doctors prescribe, not the one an insurance
company picks.
Real
senior groups are not in the pocket of an industry that has seen its profits
soar at the same time that lifesaving drugs for seniors have been priced
out of reach. Millions of dollars can buy you a lot of TV airtime,
but it doesn’t make you real. No one should be fooled. |
