HHS Secretary and Congressman Show Reform will help protect Medicare

Dearborn, MI - Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) joined Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and Dearborn Mayor John O’Reilly at a seniors forum in Dearborn this afternoon.  The three took questions from about 40 seniors on how health reform will affect their benefits. 

The event comes one week before seniors around the nation who find themselves in the Medicare Part D drug gap begin receiving $250 rebate checks. This is the first step toward covering this gap completely by 2019.  Before reform, 7,300 Medicare beneficiaries in the District fell into the coverage gap and had to pay the full cost of their prescription drugs – that according to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

“First of all, the Secretary is doing a tremendous job implementing health care reform,” Dingell said.  “The coverage gap has long been an issue with our seniors.  Those days are done.  No longer will our seniors have to choose between food and medicine.  The rebate checks, as well as prescription medication discounts that are a result of the reform package, will make this manageable.  A typical beneficiary who fell into the gap will see savings of more than $700 in 2011 and more than $3,000 by 2020.”

The health reform bill will improve coverage for 93,000 Medicare beneficiaries in Michigan’s 15th District. Those beneficiaries will now be able to take advantage of free preventive and wellness care, including improved primary and coordinated care, as well as enhanced nursing home care.  The new law also includes provisions to crack down on waste, fraud and abuse.  Last year alone, anti-fraud efforts returned more than $2.5 billion to the Medicare Trust Fund—a 29 percent increase over 2008 efforts. Because of the waste, fraud and abuse prevention efforts in the Affordable Care Act, Medicare spending will continue to grow, but at a slightly lower rate. This will help extend the life of the Medicare Trust fund by at least nine years.