Prometheus 6   

Vendor lock-in

Drug Benefit's Impact Detailed
Many Will Face Big Out-of-Pocket Costs

By Edward Walsh and Bill Brubaker
Washington Post Staff Writers
Wednesday, November 26, 2003; Page A10

The Medicare prescription drug benefit approved yesterday by the Senate will provide the most help to low-income older Americans who are not so destitute that they qualify for Medicaid, the health care program for the poor, according to experts in the field.

The vast majority of Medicare recipients should receive some benefits from the program when it takes effect in 2006. But the size of the benefits will vary depending on each person's annual spending for prescription drugs, and in many cases will involve substantial out-of-pocket expenses.

For those joining the voluntary plan, prescription drug coverage will not be provided by the government but by private companies. The bill's first impact will come this spring when prescription drug discount cards are issued. The cards, which could be offered by as many as 20 competing companies that charge different annual fees and different prices for the same medications, will be the main benefit of the legislation until the full program takes effect in 2006.