A bill that would cap out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare enrollees at $3,100 a year and save the program $100 billion over a decade passed by a 19-9 bipartisan vote Thursday in the Senate Finance Committee.The bill, the Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act of 2019, would change the financing structure of Medicare Part D to permanently eliminate the coverage gap — or donut hole. It would also require pharmaceutical companies and insurance plans to pay the lion's share of the cost of prescriptions for patients whose annual drug bills are the highest. The measure would cap patients’ out-of-pocket costs in Part D by removing the 5 percent share of a drug's cost that a Medicare beneficiary currently pays when their annual prescription charges are high enough to be considered catastrophic. These changes would begin in 2022. A bill that would cap out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for Medicare enrollees at $3,100 a year and save the program $100 billion over a decade passed by a 19-9 bipartisan vote Thursday in the Senate Finance Committee. The bill, the Prescription Drug Pricing Reduction Act of 2019, would change the financing structure of Medicare Part D to permanently eliminate the coverage gap — or donut hole. It would also require pharmaceutical companies and insurance plans to pay the lion's share of the cost of prescriptions for patients whose annual drug bills are the highest. The measure would cap patients’ out-of-pocket costs in Part D by removing the 5 percent share of a drug's cost that a Medicare beneficiary currently pays when their annual prescription charges are high enough to be considered catastrophic. These changes would begin in 2022. Full article here: Bipartisan Medicare Drug Bill / AARP.Org
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The St. Lawrence County Chapter (SLCC) #2831 is a community of advocacy and volunteers whose purpose is to 1) promote at the local level the priorities, programs and policies specific for the benefit of our seniors, 2) maximize member engagement in a broad menu of services, information and educational activities, 3) demonstrate the contributions and potential of people who are 50+ to encourage their full participation in contemporary life, 4) create fundraising opportunities to achieve self-sufficiency, and 5) stimulate public interest in a variety of issues.
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November 2019
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