Rod Grams: “My understanding is that in order to be a part of the Vice President's plan of receiving prescription drug coverage, one…”

I am not opposed to a surcharge or a prescription charge but a charge that is going to assume a new $600-per-year additional tax or cost on our seniors while providing very little in benefit that would overcome that cost.

It would cover 100 percent of everything over a $25 copay and a $150-a-month deductible for those who are in that income level or above.

We have tried, but we have not had it scored yet and have not been able to get the numbers, but some of the projections we have say it will be under $40 billion a year, not the 258 or 253 the Vice President is talking about.

Not to belabor this debate, and it is good we are talking about it because the American people need to hear it, but over that amount of money you are talking about, we would still have a $25 copay, the $150 deductible, and then no cap at…