Congressman Brady to host day-long Medicare Fair at CCP (11/29/05)

PHILADELPHIA --- Congressman Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.) will host, Navigating Medicare Part D: A Guide to the New Prescription Drug Benefit, Sat., Dec. 10 from 9:30 A.M. to 2 P.M. at the Center for Business and Industry, Community College of Philadelphia, 18th and Callowhill Sts. The informational event will include a panel discussion by representatives of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Action Alliance of Senior Citizens of Greater Philadelphia. On-site enrollment assistance will also be available.

"This event is necessary because the Medicare drug plan is so complicated. My constituents say this new law is confusing and they are very frustrated because of the numbers of different plans and benefit options, said Congressman Brady "I voted against the Medicare Modernization Act but I still have to do whatever I can to make help seniors and people with disabilities figure out which plan covers their prescriptions at the best price and at the right pharmacy."

According to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll taken last month, 61 percent of seniors still do not understand the Medicare drug program and only 20 percent plan to enroll.

Congressman Brady said he supports the Medicare Informed Choice Act, that would give seniors and people with disabilities a full year to chose a Medicare drug plan. But in the meantime Brady says, "It's important that eligible Medicare beneficiaries get all the information that they can."