Friday Alert   September 22, 2006
Alliance for Retired Americans
888 16th Street, N.W. -  Washington DC, 20006 - (202) 974-8222 - www.retiredamericans.or

Donut Hole Week a Bevy of Alliance Activity
Today - Friday, September 22nd - is "Donut Hole Day," when the average Medicare enrollee falls into Medicare Part D's donut hole, the massive gap in coverage for those beneficiaries with annual drug costs between $2,250 and $5,100.  The Alliance held several events this week to highlight the day, along with the need for Congress to eliminate the donut hole and fix Part D.  Among the activities were Alliance events in Arizona, California, Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.  Many seniors and persons with disabilities were unaware of the donut hole when they enrolled in the new Part D plans.  And even if they were aware, it would have cost nearly $40 more per month for a plan without a coverage gap.  Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee released a report this week saying that this additional cost is not something people on fixed incomes could afford.  Their report estimated that 88 percent of the Medicare beneficiaries with stand-alone coverage ended up with plans that contained a gap.

Wal-Mart Sets $4 Price for Many Generic Drugs
Retailing giant Wal-Mart, known for forcing prices down to dominate markets, said yesterday that it would sell nearly 300 generic drugs for $4 per prescription, whether or not a customer has insurance.  According to The Washington Post, using its might as the nation's largest retailer and its ability to force suppliers to cut prices to the bone, the company will begin the $4 price program in its 65 stores in the Tampa area today.  It will expand the program to all of Florida in January, and to as many other states as possible by the end of 2007.  "The federal government should look to its friends at Wal-Mart and see that negotiating bulk discounts on prescription drugs can reduce the cost to consumers," said Edward Coyle, Executive Director of the Alliance.  He continued, "This action by Wal-Mart in no way absolves it of its many failures as a responsible employer.  For example, three-quarters of a million Wal-Mart workers are uninsured or are on public health care.  Wal-Mart passes on to taxpayers $1.2 billion in health care costs each year."

WHCoA Report Is Like the Conference: A Whitewash
White House Conference on Aging delegates received the final report last week, but not without controversy.  The document is supposed to reflect the conference proceedings, but nowhere in the White House's final report is it mentioned that a vast majority of the delegates opposed the Bush plan to privatize Social Security.  Similarly, the delegates' support for major changes to Medicare Part D disappears in the final report.  At the conference, held last December, the strongest delegate support was for comprehensive drug coverage under Medicare, with the government negotiating lower drug prices.  However, this was bundled together with several other recommendations in the report.  "Shamefully, the Administration ran the Conference in a way that squelched meaningful debate, used flawed voting processes to distort the views of conference delegates, and relegated many important policy recommendations to hard-to-find appendices of the report," said Mr. Coyle. The Alliance will release its own report on the conference in the near future.

Medicare Rate Hike Not Being Taken Lying Down
Many Medicare advocates say that current, failed policies are behind rising Medicare premiums that are leaving millions of older Americans scrambling for basic health care.  One such advocate is Chris Murphy, a Connecticut state senator who is challenging Republican Rep. Nancy Johnson, the author of some of the 2003 Medicare Part D language.  In the Democrats' national radio address last week, Mr. Murphy criticized the GOP for failing to embrace the reforms needed to give seniors a break from increased health care costs.  "High prices for Medicare premiums and prescription drugs have not occurred by happenstance," agreed George J. Kourpias, President of the Alliance.  "Unless we allow the government to negotiate for lower Medicare prescription drug prices, health costs will continue rising for seniors."  Most older and disabled people on Medicare will see their premiums rise to $93.50 a month next year, a 5.6 percent increase.

New Voter ID Requirements Could Throw More Wrenches into Voting Process
The U.S. House on Wednesday passed H.R. 4844, legislation that would make Americans show proof of citizenship in order to vote.  The changes are being compared by the House Democratic Whip, Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), to a "21st century poll tax," due to the burden it places on voters.  The measure, which passed 228-196 mostly along party lines, would require voters to present photo identification at polling places, starting in 2008.  Beginning in 2010, they would also have to provide IDs proving they are U.S. citizens.  Sponsored by outgoing Rep. Henry Hyde (R-IL), the changes are unlikely to become law anytime soon, because the Senate is not expected to consider the bill this session.  Coincidentally, judges in Missouri and Georgia recently struck down laws requiring similar proof of citizenship.  Democrats assailed the legislation, saying it could hurt minorities, the poor and the elderly groups that tend to vote Democratic, who might have trouble paying for and producing a photo identification.  "This bill will not solve the current problems being seen at the polls, and will instead disenfranchise a large number of legal voters," said Ruben Burks, Secretary-Treasurer of the Alliance.

Travel
Alliance President George J. Kourpias addressed both the Missouri Alliance's 3rd Biennial Convention and the Missouri AFL-CIO's 23rd Biennial Convention in St. Louis on Tuesday.

Labor Loses a Friend
The labor family lost an important member this week with the death of Joe Glazer, 88, the troubadour of the U.S. labor movement.  Mr. Glazer performed, composed and collected the songs of work and protest for 60 years, inspiring workers on strike, leading countless union rallies, and performing at hundreds of other protests and events, including three Alliance conventions in Washington, D.C.  Best known for three classic labor songs, "Automation," "The Mill Was Made of Marble," and "Too Old to Work," Mr. Glazer recorded more than 30 albums over his lifetime, and his contributions to the labor movement will forever be remembered.

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