Yesterday (April 25), state Senator Jim Sullivan held a town hall meeting to discuss SeniorCare at the West Milwaukee "Senior Center" at 47th and Greenfield. The room was packed with seniors eager to hear what the panel had to say--and to let panelists know what they thought!
Two of the three state representatives from Sullivan’s Fifth District, David Cullen and Tony Staskunas, were there, along with representatives for Jim Sensenbrenner, Herb Kohl, Russ Feingold, and Jim Doyle. Elder advocates Gail MacInnes from the Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups and Matt Hayes from SeniorLaw completed the panel. (Apologies to any panelists I may have missed.)
Advice to seniors
• If you have SeniorCare, hold tight for a few weeks to see what happens. Even if there’s no extension (the worst-case scenario), you’ll have 60 days after the end date, June 30, to choose a new plan.
• At the same time, it would be a good idea to start examining Part D plans now so you have time to process information and choose.
• SeniorLaw advocates are available at no charge to Milwaukee County seniors to help evaluate which of the 50+ Part D plans might work best for them, as everyone’s situation is different. Remember that how well the plan will work for you depends on your other coverage as well, so all of it needs to be considered together.
Other take away points from panelists and audience members
State support for SeniorCare is bipartisan and nearly universal, and everyone has been lobbying hard for its continuation. But the power to extend the program lies with the Bush administration, which does not want the program to go forward for reasons that appear to have more to do with serving pharmaceutical companies than serving seniors.
Senators Feingold and Kohl placed a 2.5 year extension for SeniorCare into an Iraq study bill. President Bush will veto the bill, however. They are exploring other legislation.
While getting the several year extension is unlikely, it’s very likely that SeniorCare will be extended six months to give people time to change and the state time to develop a “wrap-around” program for a smooth transition to Medicare Part D.
Wisconsin elected officials and senior advocacy groups continue to fight for SeniorCare and explore all possible approaches to saving it.
The lack of reimbursement for preventive care is a serious flaw in our healthcare system that creates greater costs during the senior years. Reform of the whole system is imperative.
The governor and others made promises that SeniorCare would continue. They need to honor those promises, whatever it takes to do it.
The federal government has called for state innovations and models as a way of finding out what works and what doesn't. But for that to work, they have to be willing to adopt the best practices, not pass them over for programs that are more expensive and less effective.
Links
Medicare information
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
SeniorLaw
Coalition of Wisconsin Aging Groups
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