Contact: Scott Parkin 202-479-6975

 Statement of James P. Firman

Chair, Access to Benefits Coalition

Sept. 22, 2005

The figures released today by the Social Security Administration show that three million out of a total of 18.6 million Medicare beneficiaries who were sent letters have applied for the extra help available through the new Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage in 2006.   While a 16% response rate is a good beginning, we look forward to next month when SSA will report on how many of these people were actually determined to be eligible for the benefit. 

All  available evidence indicates that it will still take a long-term and sustained effort to find and enroll most of the 7.2 million Medicare beneficiaries who are likely eligible for the low-income subsidy. The Access to Benefits Coalition, its more than 100 national members and 54 local coalitions in 37 states, remains committed to reaching out and enrolling as many beneficiaries as possible in the coming months. Using BenefitsCheckUpRx (found at www.BenefitsCheckUpRx.org), the powerful, Web-based decision support tool supported by the Administration on Aging and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, our efforts will help to enroll millions of people nationwide.

For more information about the Access to Benefits Coalition, go to www.AccesstoBenefits.org.