Advocates Applaud the Governor and the Legislature for Approving a Budget that Maintains Access to Vital Prescription Drug Benefits for Seniors
April 27, 2009
Contact: Cathy Roberts, (518) 462-6831
Lisa Sbrana, The Legal Aid Society 212-577-3394; Valerie Bogart, Selfhelp Community Services 212-971-7693
Advocates from the Legal Aid Society, Selfhelp Community Services, Empire Justice Center, New York StateWide Senior Action Council, Legal Services for the Elderly, Disabled or Disadvantaged of Western NY, the New York Legal Assistance Group, the Community Service Society and the Medicare Rights Center extend their thanks to Governor Paterson, Assembly Speaker Silver, Senate Majority Leader Smith, Assembly Aging Committee Chair Dinowitz, Senate Aging Committee Chair Diaz, Assembly Health Committee Chair Gottfried, and Senate Health Committee Chair Duane and Assembly Judiciary Committee Chair Weinstein for their leadership and commitment to providing vital prescription drug access to low-income seniors and individuals with disabilities.
“The 2009-2010 State Budget acknowledges the difficulties low-income seniors face obtaining prescriptions through Medicare Part D plans,” said Cathy Roberts, senior paralegal with the Empire Justice Center. “By maintaining the Elderly Prescription Insurance Coverage (EPIC) program wrap-around coverage of Medicare Part D, this budget continues the State’s commitment to ensuring that low-income seniors do not leave the pharmacy without their medications.”
In addition to the EPIC wrap, the Budget maintains access to four vital classes of medications under the Medicaid program for those seniors and disabled New Yorkers who are enrolled in Part D and are also eligible for Medicaid rather than EPIC. The Budget also uses federal stimulus dollars to fund Part D-related legal advocacy services to low-income Medicare beneficiaries, and helps ensure that Part D plans fulfill their legal obligations to serve as payers of first resort.
“The funding we receive from the State allows us to help individuals appeal incorrect denials from Medicare prescription drug plans,” said David Silva, an attorney with Selfhelp Community Services, Inc. “Other times, rather than appealing, the best strategy might be to transfer to a Part D plan that cover all their medications, or to help the individual follow their plan’s utilization review requirements in order to make sure cost-sharing required by Medicare Part D is kept to a minimum. Part D is a very complex system for people to navigate on their own.”
“Many of our clients have chronic illnesses and require multiple prescription medications each month to manage their conditions,” said Lisa Sbrana, supervising attorney of the Legal Aid Society’s Health Law Unit. “We often receive desperate phone calls from individuals transitioning from Medicaid to Medicare’s prescription drug coverage – people are confused because their pharmacists tell them that the prescriptions they received every month under Medicaid are not covered by their new Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. We are grateful to our legislative leaders for continuing the programs that serve as a safety net for these clients.”
“This critical funding allows our organizations to reach seniors who often do not receive services from traditional government agencies due to lack of resources, education, or language or cultural barriers,” noted Maria Alvarez, deputy director of the New York StateWide Senior Action Council. “We are also available as a resource to local aging service providers working with seniors with Medicare Part D and related issues.”
