Liberal myth

Millions of uninsured seniors will benefit from the Medicare prescription drug benefit since they lack insurance to cover drugs.

The facts

Most seniors have prescription drug coverage—and the Medicare benefit will limit their options.

• There is no evidence in professional literature saying that access to prescription drugs is a universal problem among seniors
• Seventy-eight percent of Medicare beneficiaries currently have some form of prescription drug coverage
• Its effect could be to crowd out cheaper, more effective private insurance—creating the very problem it tried to avoid

Related Heritage research

• Issues 2004: “Medicare“
• “A Medicare Prescription Drug Primer,” August 16, 2002
• Robert E. Moffit, “Courting Disaster: Adding a Prescription Drug Benefit Without Serious Medicare Reform,” May 17, 2002