Oakland Tribune: Demos don't swallow drug plan

WASHINGTON -- Senate Democrats assailed the Republicans' newly minted Medicare drug plan on Thursday as a sure path to higher premiums for seniors, but stopped short of threatening a filibuster that could delay or derail passage.

"This program is untested. It's untried. ... It's playing roulette with the lives of senior citizens," said Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D- Mass., taking aim at a feature of the plan that puts traditional Medicare in direct competition with new private insurance plans beginning in 2007.

Kennedy and the two Democratic leaders of Congress heaped on their criticism as President Bush told an audience in Florida it was time for lawmakers to act "for today's seniors but also for tomorrow's retirees."

"Either we'll have more debate, more delay and more deadlock, or we'll make real progress" in the coming days, he added, urging his audience to bring pressure on lawmakers to send him legislation soon.

The president made no specific reference to the proposal brokered by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and Speaker Dennis Hastert and embraced thus far by only two Senate Democrats.

In a subplot, while Republicans said they expected to gain the approval of the politically influential AARP, the group's chief executive suggested the plan for direct competition in four metropolitan areas and one region be scaled down.

"That sounds big," William D. Novelli said in an interview, adding the issue was "an example of what others should negotiate."

At its core, the emerging bill would provide seniors a prescription drug benefit beginning in 2006, at a cost of $35 a month. The low-income would receive subsidies to defray the cost. At the same time, the plan would encourage private insurance companies to offer coverage under preferred provider organizations to seniors willing to opt out of traditional Medicare.

Republicans argue that the new private health plans would help modernize Medicare and possibly give seniors access to benefits such as preventive health care that are not currently covered by the government-run program.

At the same time, they hope it will slow the growth in the cost of the program.

Many Democrats are wary of such a large role for private companies, but have been willing to accept it as part of a grand bargain that also included Republican support for the new drug benefit.

But in months of closed-door talks, lawmakers were unable to bridge their differences over Republican demands for direct competition between the two forms of coverage -- the private and the public.

The plan blessed by Republicans Hastert and Frist called for a three-year program limited to four metropolitan areas and one additional region of the country where managed care already has 30 percent of its Medicare beneficiaries enrolled. The Department of Health and Human Services could approve a three-year extension of the program, but after that, it would expire without action by Congress.

In addition to the objections raised by the Democrats, Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, circulated a letter criticizing the provision for competition and urging its removal from the measure.

"The likely result will be significant increases in traditional Medicare premiums for seniors living in the affected area and could destabilize the Medicare program for all seniors," it said.

Also, the lead House negotiator in months of compromise talks was balking.

Republican officials described Rep. Bill Thomas, R-Calif., as angry that Hastert and Frist had gone around him in making their deal, and also as having concerns about the wisdom of the policy they had advanced. At one point, Thomas relayed word that he was leaving Washington for his home in California. He reconsidered, though, and reconvened a meeting of the core group of negotiators.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, told reporters that inside the room, Thomas was doing much of the talking, expressing concern that the competition plan crafted by Hastert and Frist would not work.

"It's like all negotiations. The Japanese have a saying: The last inch is darkness. We're in the dark," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., who on Wednesday had said he was inclined to support the GOP plan. Sen. John Breaux, D-La., also has expressed support.

Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota told reporters that seniors would face "dramatic variations in premiums" if the plan were put into law, and said the AARP had "caved in to the pressures" from GOP leaders. "I think you're going to have a revolt within that organization," he said of the group that boasts 35 million members over age 50.

"There's not going to be a revolt within AARP," retorted Novelli, "There's going to be a problem if Congress fails to pass this legislation."

That was Bush's text, as well.

In his remarks, the president also spoke favorably of one key Republican priority, a provision calling for congressional action if Medicare spending rises faster than expected.

"The accounting safeguard that we're working on in the bill will help Medicare stand on a strong financial foundation," he said.