In all of the articles published in the past couple of months about the new Medicare Part D program, most have encouraged – indeed, urged – seniors to get with it and sign up. The local agencies have had seminars and workshops, seniors have been prompted to have their grandchildren help them navigate the intricacies of the Internet, Web sites, formulary programs …

Why has so little attention been paid to two important issues? And, considering the issues, why would any thinking senior be conned into this political chicanery masquerading as a “benefit package”?

One is that nowhere in the legislation on which this new “benefit” is based was there a move to use the huge numbers of seniors as leverage to force the pharmaceutical companies to lower their prices for this so-called “benefit” program. Why were drug prices not negotiated as part of this legislation?

The second is the completely glossed-over and rarely mentioned fact that a senior can sign up for coverage – essentially sign a contract – and is held to that contract with that particular insurance company’s plan for a year. The insurance company has no obligation to fulfill its part of the contract and can opt out of coverage for any given drug at any time during the course of that contract.

If I sign up to cover a specific set of drugs with a company that offers to cover all of them, I am obligated to stay with that company for a year. A month into the contract, the insurance company can stop covering the two most expensive drugs (see point one above) and I am stuck with their coverage for the remaining 11 months.

Benefit? Well, surely to the pharmaceutical and insurance companies. To the nation’s seniors – most certainly not.

Norinne H. Daly

Old Town