Patty Murray: “Congress is about to update Medicare to finally help seniors with prescription drugs, and while I have some real…”

“Congress is about to update Medicare to finally help seniors with prescription drugs, and while I have some real concerns about the way this bill would provide drug coverage, I am convinced that after 5 years of stalemate, it is time to pass a drug benefit now to begin to get seniors the help they need. Mr. President, I have been working to improve this bill by providing additional funding in the Budget Committee, by supporting various amendments, and by offering my own amendment. I want to make sure that the drug benefit we create will help as many seniors as possible. Before we add a new benefit to Medicare, we have to remember that there's a serious problem with Medicare today that penalizes seniors based on where they live. The problem is in the payment formula that Medicare uses, and it hurts many seniors. Today under Medicare, some seniors can get fewer services--and pay higher premiums--just based on where they live. Every senior pays the same amount into Medicare, but some seniors get much fewer benefits based on geography. That's not fair to seniors in my State and in other States. For the past few years, I've been working to fix that problem. Last year, I introduced the MediFair Act to bring all States up to the national average in Medicare payments. We are still working to fix this disparity in Medicare today. The problem is that this new drug benefit would follow that same old, unfair formula.”