Elderly to See Benefit from Health Care Bill Sooner, Rather than Later

By Charles Bassett, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Senior citizens will see an immediate benefit from the health care bill signed by President Obama this week.

The health care bill closes a gap in Medicare that was costing seniors thousands of dollars out of their own pockets.

The deal was finalized Thursday night when the House passed the reconciliation bill and now nearly a quarter million Oklahoma seniors will immediately start seeing a savings on prescription drugs.

Wanda Jenkins, 72, suffers from high blood pressure and has to have her medication to keep it under control. Last year Jenkins reached a Medicare cap for prescription drugs and fell into the so-called Part-D "doughnut hole." Any medications after the cap, she has to pay full price.

"My medications just doubled, or more than doubled, and with having three or four of them, that's over $100," said Jenkins. "Sometimes it was hard to make ends meet."

Seniors get a discount on prescriptions under the program up to $2,830 and after that they fall into a gap. The next $4,550 for medications comes out of their own pockets. If they go beyond the gap Medicare's catastrophic coverage kicks in.

"That's a tremendous cost for people on limited incomes and every year that doughnut hole gets larger because the cost of prescription drugs are outpacing inflation," Sean Voskuhl with the Oklahoma AARP said.

Under the new health care bill seniors who fall into the doughnut hole will get an immediate $250 rebate. Next year the cost of their prescription drugs will be cut in half. In 10 years the gap will be closed completely.

"Currently in Oklahoma there are 221,000 people that are on Part-D that reach that doughnut hole, so it will affect a lot of seniors in a positive way," Voskuhl said.

As for Jenkins, she says she'll keep paying for the drugs until she gets relief. She can't afford to stop; she's already lost her parents and some siblings to heart disease.

"It's very important that I take that medicine, its life or death," Jenkins said.

The president is set to put the final signature on the legislation next week.

AARP has an online calculator that can help you determine when and if you will fall into the gap.

More: Health Care Timeline: What Happens Now and What's Coming Later?