Dear Floridian: You may have heard of the Medicare drug benefit`s "doughnut hole." It`s the large gap in coverage for seniors` annual prescription costs between $2,251 and $5,100. While their spending hovers in this gap, beneficiaries continue to pay premiums, but receive no coverage for their prescription medicines. More than one-quarter of all Medicare beneficiaries are projected to have drug spending that falls in the doughnut hole`s range, according to the Congressional Budget Office. A recent article in the Orlando Sentinel stated that 7 million Medicare recipients are expected to reach the doughnut hole in 2006. I introduced the bipartisan Medicare Prescription Drug Gap Reduction Act of 2006 along with Senator Collins to reduce the impact of the doughnut hole on Medicare beneficiaries. The bill allows the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries for lower drug prices and applies these savings to diminish the doughnut hole. The legislation that created the Medicare drug benefit actually prohibits the HHS Secretary from using the purchasing power of over 40 million Medicare beneficiaries to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices. Our bill would: Give the Secretary of HHS the authority, similar to that of other Federal entities that purchase prescription drugs in bulk, to negotiate contracts with manufacturers of drugs and obtain the lowest possible price for Medicare beneficiaries. Require the Secretary also to negotiate for fallback plans and upon the request of a plan for any covered drug. Require that savings from this provision be applied towards expanding coverage in the Medicare doughnut hole. It is unacceptable that seniors will struggle to pay for their medications because of this huge gap in coverage. We can easily expand coverage if we allow Medicare to negotiate. Sincerely, Bill Nelson
U.S. Senator | 
