Max Baucus: “The administration's drug plan essentially abandons the 89 percent of senior citizens who are now on fee-for-service.…”

“The administration's drug plan essentially abandons the 89 percent of senior citizens who are now on fee-for-service. How? By providing that seniors who stay in fee-for-service get catastrophic benefits and a discount card but they do not get additional drug benefits. However, if you are a senior and enroll in managed care, you are going to get a drug benefit, therefore, forcing seniors out of fee-for-service, into managed care. I might add this will also not save money. The managed care programs we have in our country are costing more than fee-for-service. They are costing more than the Federal Employees Health Benefit package. And seniors are dropping out of managed care because they are not getting the benefits they deserve.”