"Prescription drugs are as important to a Medicare beneficiary's health today as a hospital bed was in 1965 when the program was created."
Last year, Senator Collins was an original co-sponsor of an amendment offered by Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) to the budget resolution that provided $300 billion to modernize Medicare and provide a prescription drug benefit over ten years. The events surrounding September 11th, however, understandably diverted attention to the war on terrorism, temporarily pushing other critically important issues, such as this one, to the back burner.
"As we move into the new session of Congress, there is strong bipartisan support for putting prescription drugs back at the top of our agenda, and I believe that we should use the amount provided in last year's budget resolution as a starting point," the Senator said.
"Too many older Americans are running up huge, high-interest credit card bills to buy medicine they otherwise couldn't afford. Even more alarming are the accounts of patients who are either skipping doses to stretch out their pill supplies or forced to choose between paying the bills or buying the prescription drugs that keep them healthy. It is therefore critical that we bring Medicare into line with most private sector insurance plans and expand the program to include prescription drugs."
Senator Collins has made the same appeal to the President as he prepares his FY 2003 budget.