Chuck Grassley: “I think we have a Secretary who is working hard on it. There are problems, but at the same time, we are writing a…”

“I think we have a Secretary who is working hard on it. There are problems, but at the same time, we are writing a million prescriptions a day without incident. Beneficiaries are saving a lot of money. I spoke with the Senator from Florida about how the average premium is now $25 a month, 20 percent lower than we first projected. I spoke with the Senator from Florida about the lower drug costs, saving the taxpayers dollars as well. Just this year, the benefit, as I said, will cost $8 billion less than originally thought. The 10-year cost has dropped by $180 billion. I heard from a couple in Iowa who are saving nearly $2,800 a year. Another Iowan is saving $1,750 a year. And here is another one. A person from Massachusetts is saving $17,000--$17,000--a year on medicine because they are participating in this program. Getting this level of savings depends on strong competition among the plans, and we have that. Many people will remember the skepticism on whether many plans would participate at all. Some would say that we have too many choices and that is why beneficiaries need more time. Those choices, in fact--let me put it this way: It is not just choices, but because of choice, we have competition keeping premiums low, and they are letting people pick the plan that best suits their medical needs. My amendment strikes an effective compromise, I believe, to Senator Nelson's amendment, which is before us.…”