jimntx
Veteran
If you are planning to retire some day, of if you have friends or family that are retired or plan to retire some day, you might want to write your representatives in Congress ASAP.
The version of the Prescription Drug Benefit Bill passed by the U.S. Senate contains a provision which would allow employers to deny health benefits, such as insurance, to company retirees if they qualify for Medicare or ANY state-funded health plan. Ask anyone in the medical profession if they would depend upon Medicare alone for their health insurance. A single catastrophic illness could impoverish you.
Also, the "benefit" as it now stands would require a retiree to pay $2400 out of pocket for the first $4000 in prescriptions. $4000 a year for medicine is not hard to do. My cholesterol medication alone would costs almost $1600/year if I did not have insurance.
The version of the Prescription Drug Benefit Bill passed by the U.S. Senate contains a provision which would allow employers to deny health benefits, such as insurance, to company retirees if they qualify for Medicare or ANY state-funded health plan. Ask anyone in the medical profession if they would depend upon Medicare alone for their health insurance. A single catastrophic illness could impoverish you.
Also, the "benefit" as it now stands would require a retiree to pay $2400 out of pocket for the first $4000 in prescriptions. $4000 a year for medicine is not hard to do. My cholesterol medication alone would costs almost $1600/year if I did not have insurance.
