FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2009

WASHINGTON—AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond released the following statement applauding the House on its passage of H.R. 3961, the Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009:

“We applaud the House for ensuring that millions of people in Medicare will have the peace of mind of knowing that they will be able to keep access to the physician of their choice.  The Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act will fix the flawed Medicare physician payment formula and eliminate a looming 21 percent cut to reimbursement rates.  With today’s vote, the House has taken a major step towards reforming the physician payment system so doctors will not only continue to treat existing Medicare patients, but also accept new patients.

“We urge the Senate to act promptly on behalf of older Americans and the physicians who care for them and ensure that an unwarranted physician pay cut does not threaten access to care.  With only weeks to go before the cuts go into effect, the time to act is now.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 19, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 18, 2009

   Legislation unveiled today is important step toward meaningful health care reform

WASHINGTON—AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond issued this statement following today’s introduction of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act:

“We applaud the Senate for merging the Finance and Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committees’ bills and taking another important step toward fixing what’s wrong with our health care system. Under the leadership of Majority Leader Reid and Senators Baucus, Harkin and Dodd, the legislation announced today makes progress toward achieving meaningful relief for millions of older Americans who still face challenges accessing affordable, quality health care services.

“The new Senate bill makes improvements to the Medicare program by creating a new annual wellness benefit, providing free preventive benefits, and—most notably for AARP members—reducing drug costs for seniors who fall into the dreaded Medicare doughnut hole, a costly gap in prescription drug coverage. Too often, those who fall into this coverage gap stop taking their prescription drugs because they simply can’t afford to. The new bill adds a new $500 down payment for prescription drug costs in the doughnut hole in 2010. While we welcome this extra help, we urge the Senate to go further to meet the President’s pledge to completely close the doughnut hole. With the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs, we believe this bill should be improved so that it can help millions of older Americans afford their needed medications and avoid more intensive and costly care later in life.

“The bill also makes improvements on age-rating, a discriminatory practice that allows insurers to charge exorbitant, age-based premiums to older Americans. Under the new Senate bill, insurance companies will not be allowed to charge older Americans more than three times more than younger Americans for premiums. We hope the final bill can be improved even further in this area.

“Finally, AARP strongly supports provisions in the Senate bill to strengthen long-term services and supports. The bill retains the Community Living Assistance Services and Supports (CLASS) program, which recognizes that older individuals and people with disabilities should have the right to live independently in their own homes and communities, and to receive the help they need without having to spend down to poverty. We also applaud the inclusion of provisions to improve access to Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS). Home and community-based care is widely supported by AARP members and is not only cost-effective, but can also help slow the growth in health care spending and keep millions of Americans out of nursing homes and in their own homes.

“The legislation put forward today is yet another milestone in the long journey to health care reform. We look forward to continuing our work with Senators on both sides of the aisle to further strengthen the bill, and we will continue to fight for reform that protects benefits for people in Medicare, improves health care affordability, and improves the health of every American.”

For more information on AARP’s health care reform effort, please visit http://www.aarp.org/health/articles/health_reform_get_the_facts.html. 
 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, November 16, 2009

SACRAMENTO— A new poll of California AARP members released today finds strong support across party and ideological lines for elements of health care reform included in the Affordable Health Care for America Act, which recently passed the House of Representatives. AARP endorsed the bill, which strictly limits how much more insurance companies can charge based on age and closes the Medicare prescription drug “doughnut hole.”

Among AARP members, strong majorities reported that many of the bill’s key provisions were convincing reasons to support the legislation. These include strictly limiting insurers from charging much higher premiums because of age (66%), closing the gap in Medicare’s prescription drug coverage known as the doughnut hole (66%) and improving coverage for critical preventive services like cancer screenings (74%).

“This survey demonstrates what we’ve been hearing from our members for a long time,” said AARP California State Director Tom Porter. “Despite all the inflammatory language that has surrounded the debate about health care reform, our members — across party and ideological lines — firmly support reform that protects Medicare, lowers the price of prescription drugs, increases their access to coverage and protects their choice of doctor.”

While a partisan divide was evident when respondents were asked about the current plan in Congress, California AARP members supported the legislation by more than a 2-to-1 margin. In addition, 55% of self-described independents said they supported the plan.

Other reform elements with high levels of support among California AARP members included ensuring patients can see the doctor of their choice (69%), stopping insurance companies from denying coverage because of a person’s health history (77%) and ensuring Americans can keep their current coverage (74%). Majorities of self-identified Republicans supported most of the reform elements presented, including stopping discrimination because of pre-existing conditions (60%), covering routine preventive care (63%) and allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices (58%).

“The bill recently passed by the House incorporates the reforms that our members care most about,” said Porter. “We’ll continue the fight for these critical elements as the Senate takes up its own legislation in the coming weeks. Our members, and all older Americans, are counting on lawmakers to reform the health care system this year.”

Starting on Tuesday, November 17th, AARP will launch a new national television ad on a mix of news, lifestyle, cable and sports channels. The ad, entitled “HELP,” demonstrates that people from all walks of life are feeling stranded by the current health care system. It calls attention to the need for the kind of health care reform AARP has been fighting for: reform that will put patients first, protect Medicare, bring down drug costs and ensure that no one can be denied affordable health care because of their age or health history.


METHODOLOGY: AARP surveyed its California members from October 30 to November 8, 2009 about the current health care reform plan in the House of Representatives. This survey of 404 is representative of AARP members in the state of California and has a margin of error of +/- 4.9%. The complete survey is available at http://www.aarp.org/resear ch/surveys/care/health/hcreform/articles/hrhcr.html. 
 

WASHINGTON—With Sunday marking the beginning of Medicare’s open enrollment period, AARP is reminding its members and all older Americans to compare their current Medicare drug and health plans with others that are available and choose the one that best fits their needs. People in Medicare have until December 31 to add, drop or change prescription drug and health care plans for 2010. Each year, AARP encourages its members and everyone in Medicare to carefully consider their options for the coming year.

AARP suggests that seniors pay particular attention to changes in the cost of Part D drug coverage. A new AARP Public Policy Institute (PPI) analysis of 2010 Medicare Part D prescription drug plans finds a majority of the most popular national plans have increased premiums and cost-sharing for next year.

The report finds that more plans will require copayments of close to $100 for some brand name drugs. Other plans will require enrollees to pay a percentage of their drugs’ prices—instead of fixed copayments—for all medicines except generics. One popular national plan will charge different amounts depending on which pharmacies its customers use.

“Even those seniors who are happy with their current drug coverage should watch carefully for changes to their plans in 2010,” said AARP Senior Vice President Cheryl Matheis. “Each year the rising costs of prescription drugs help push premiums and cost-sharing even higher. Now is the time to talk with your doctor about lower-cost medicines that may be right for you. Then, take a close look at your coverage options and find a plan that best fits your needs and your budget.”

AARP encourages older Americans shopping for Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage to use the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder at www.medicare.gov. This online tool finds plans based on a person’s location and current medications. After receiving a list of available plans, AARP recommends considering the “Four C’s”:

* Costs, including the monthly premium, the annual deductible and cost-sharing.
* Coverage for as many of your drugs as possible, which could save a person from paying more out of pocket.
* Convenience of participating pharmacy locations or access to mail-order pharmacies.
* Customer Service. Check Medicare.gov, which includes quality ratings for plans. Ask you doctors, pharmacist and friends about their experiences.

The open enrollment period is also an opportunity for people in Medicare to shop for Medicare Advantage plans, which generally combine traditional Medicare benefits with prescription drug coverage and some supplemental benefits. People in Medicare can compare Medicare Advantage plans head-to-head by using the health plan finder at www.medicare.gov. Seniors who need help finding a prescription drug or Medicare Advantage plan can also contact Medicare at 1-800-633-4227.

“Whether you’re looking to move up to a more comprehensive plan, or just looking for the best price, now is the time to shop,” Matheis added. “Making a smart decision now can pay off big next year.”

The December edition of AARP Bulletin looks at trends in Medicare drug plan costs for 2010. Its web site also provides a step-by-step guide to comparing drug plans and finding the best plan for you. The guide is available at http://bulletin.aarp.org/yourhealth/medicare/articles/quick_route_through_the_medicare_drug_plan_finder_2010.html.

AARP’s fact sheet on 2010 Part D plans is available at http://www.aarp.org/research/ppi/health-care/medicare/articles/fs161-medicare.html.

WASHINGTON—AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond issued this statement following today’s introduction of the Affordable Health Care for America Act in the House of Representatives:

“Today, the House brings us one step closer to a decades-long goal of repairing America’s broken health care system. AARP commends the leadership of Speaker Pelosi and the committee chairs for making progress on an issue that has ended in failure too many times before.

“The Affordable Health Care for America Act will strictly limit insurance companies from discriminating against older Americans because of their age, while making other critical reforms that will make insurance available to every American, regardless of gender or medical history. At the same time, this bill brings improvements to the Medicare program by closing the dreaded prescription drug doughnut hole and adding new benefits to make preventive care more affordable.

“In the coming days, AARP will carefully review this comprehensive bill to determine precisely how it will affect the health care of all older Americans. The urgency for health reform continues to grow, and we cannot afford to delay action.

“We look forward to continuing our work with members of the House and Senate to pass a health care bill this year that protects and improves Medicare and makes quality health coverage available to Americans of all ages.”

For more information on AARP’s health care reform effort, please visit http://www.aarp.org/health/articles/health_reform_get_the_facts.html.

S. 1776 would have preserved access by replacing flawed payment system

WASHINGTON—AARP today criticized the Senate’s vote to block the Medicare Physician Fairness Act (S. 1776)—a bill that would have preserved access to doctors for people in Medicare.  A statement from AARP Senior Vice President David Sloane follows:

“On behalf of our 40 million members, AARP is deeply disappointed that legislation to preserve seniors’ access to their doctors was blocked in the U.S. Senate today, proving once again Washington lawmakers would rather play political games than protect the needs of seniors.

“The Senate’s failure to fix the flawed doctor payment system means that payment rates for doctors in Medicare could be cut by 21.5 percent in just a few months.  Short-term patches to preserve physician pay make the access problem worse by undermining doctors’ confidence in the Medicare program.

“AARP supported this bill because it would have given Medicare patients the certainty they deserve in knowing that access to their doctors would be preserved.  Despite today’s setback, AARP will keep fighting for a legislative solution that will protect seniors’ access to their doctors and ensure they can get the care they need to stay healthy.”

For more information on AARP’s health care reform effort, please visit http://www.aarp.org/health/articles/health_reform_get_the_facts.html.

AARP California ended the 2009 Legislative year with a number of important victories. At the close of the regular session, Governor Schwarzenegger signed 12 additional AARP-supported bills bringing the total for the year to 15 bills.

Here are highlights of some important bills from the 2009 Legislative year:

In August, Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 392 (Feuer), urgency legislation that immediately restored 1.6 million dollars for the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program. The bill will help ensure the protection of over 250,000 older Californians, many of whom are elderly and live in nursing facilities.

In June, a broad team effort of both Capitol and Legislative District members and staff was successful in pushing back an effort to pass AB 761 (Calderon) this year. The bill would have allowed mobile home parks to circumvent local ordinances and raise rental rates by substantial amounts (when a vacancy occurs). Additionally, more than 200 AARP members made phone calls to help prevent passage of this bill for the rest of the year.

In May, the Governor signed AB 23 (Jones) -- "Cal-COBRA" legislation, which extends subsidized health insurance to employees of small employers (2-19 people) who are involuntarily terminated and are eligible for funds available under the American Recovery Act.

Additionally, our AARP California Capitol Action Team ended the year with Governor Schwarzenegger signing approximately a dozen bills.

Here is a complete list of AARP-supported bills signed by the Governor:

AMERICAN RECOVERY ACT
SBX3 24 (Alquist) Federal Stimulus

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT / VOTING RIGHTS
AB 30 (Price) 17 year old voter pre registration

FINANCIAL SECURITY / REVERSE MORTGAGES /
CONSUMER PROTECTION
AB 329 (Feuer) Reverse Mortgage Elder Protection Act
SB 94 (Calderon) Mortgage Loan Modifications: Restrictions on Upfront Fees SB 98 (Calderon) Life Insurance Fraud: Stranger Originated Life Insurance
AB 370 (Eng) Unlicensed Contractors

LONG TERM CARE FACILITIES
AB 215 (Feuer) Long term care facilities: Center for Medicare -- Ratings
AB 407 (Beall) Disclosures: Nursing Home Closures
AB 1169 (Ruskin) Transparency: Retirement Living Facilities

MEDI-CAL: ELIGIBILITY
AB 1269 (Brownley) Working Disability Program

ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: RESEARCH
AB 292 (Yamada) Personal income tax contributions -- Alzheimer's Disease

PRESCRIPTION: LABELING
SB 470 (Corbett) Labeling

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS
SB 23 (Padilla) Manufactured Housing: Emergency Preparedness Plans

Many thanks to our Capitol Action Team and all of you who contacted your legislators and the Governor in support of these important bills!