Bush Drug Discount Plan is Ruse To Probe Senior Finances

[JDPriestly]

Who would'a thunk it? The Prescription Discount Plan that Bush pushed through Congress is actually a ruse to coax very personal information out of seniors.

If you are 65 or over, watch out for this one. It's a trap. The information you give the government today could come back to haunt you someday when you really need federal assistance. What's more, if you make a mistake in declaring your income and assets to the federal government, however innocent, you could be in serious trouble for committing fraud on the federal government.

I never thought even the Bush administration could sink so low as to try to trick elderly people into giving the government this kind of information. This declaration sounds like the ones you fill out to get a student loan, a house loan or to apply for welfare. But this is just for a measly prescription discount. If you've ever filled out student loan applications, you will know how tough income and asset reports can be even if you have very little. But this plan picks on seniors and those who need this most are sick to begin with. You can tell what kind of people thought this up. People who have money and can hire an accountant. This is ridiculous!

Senior centers throughout the region are bracing for an onslaught of telephone calls from confused Medicare recipients who are being asked to disclose the most intimate details of their financial lives to Uncle Sam.

In anticipation of the new Medicare prescription drug program, which will be rolled out in January, the Social Security Administration is asking millions of recipients of the federal health insurance program to detail their income and assets.


. . . .


Under the drug benefit program, passed by Congress in 2003, individuals with annual incomes below $14,355 and married couples who make less than $19,245 will be eligible for the subsidies if they also pass an asset test.

In other words, to qualify for the subsidy, beneficiaries must also have very little tucked away in stocks, bonds, bank accounts, and life insurance policies. The asset limit is $10,000 for individuals and $20,000 for couples, not including their primary home, vehicle, or burial plot. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that 1.8 million poor Americans will lose out on the subsidies because they saved for their golden years.

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2005/07/24/seniors_offered_medicare_advice/

[FloridaPat]

1. Interesting tidbit about Medicare. Seems you can take advantage of

it if you want. However, the gov't has the right to get it's money back after you're gone. If you're broke, that's not a problem. If you aren't, your survivors could be in for a big shock. I've read several stories where they've already done this. This obviously makes it easier to see who they can go after.

[JDPriestly]

2. How right you are.

Medicare is no gift, but Congress acts like it is.

[Lindsay]

3. The good news is that they do tell you on the application form

not to bother to send it in if you have assets in excess of the limit. (I am on SS disability, so I just got the form in the mail last week.)

I do have a 401(k) rollover, so I'm too "wealthy" to qualify for the drug benefit.