A group of pharmacists in Texas is lobbying the White House, demanding to be reimbursed for giving away prescription drugs to Medicare beneficiaries. From CNNMoney.com:
“If pharmacists don’t receive immediate relief, some will go broke,” Bill Pittman, a former president of the Texas State Board of Pharmacy who is chairman of Pharmacists for Bush, a political fund-raising group, was quoted by the Times as saying he told Rove. “Others are hurting so bad that they will choose not to participate in Medicare and Medicaid.”
This is probably the result of Medicare’s new drug program, which doctors, providers, and beneficiaries say is confusing.
In other Medicare news, Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota has proposed the Minnesota Pharmacy Access Program, which would extend prescription drug discounts to uninsured, low-income seniors who don’t qualify for Medicaid but can’t afford private insurance. The plan would cost $2.5 million over three years. Pawlenty says he will try to extend the program to Medicare Part D beneficiaries. (St. Paul Pioneer Press)
