• AFT Retirees Reach 200,000 Members
• Medicare Part B Premiums To Increase 11.2 percent
  in 2007
• 7M Medicare Beneficiaries To Reach Part D
  'Donut Hole' This Year
• Medicare Drug Plans Often Give Inaccurate, Incomplete Information
• White House Plans Medicare Changes
• Demonstration Project Would Offer HSA-like Options to Medicare Beneficiaries
• HSAs Unlikely To Reduce Healthcare Spending
• Senate Approves Legislation To Allow
  Drug Reimportation
• Expected NLRB Ruling Sparks Week of Rallies, Protests
• Report Documents Rollbacks in Worker Protections
• White House Proposes $721 B for
  Social Security Privatization
• Americans Not Retiring When They Plan
• Many Hospice Patients Survive, Live Longer Lives
  than Predicted
• Tax Cuts Add to Debt Burden
• Entertainment Discounts for AFT Members
• Quote of Note: Inaccurate Information on
  Medicare Part D
• Web site of the Week: http://seniortravel.about.com/od/tours/ht/
  how_pick.htm

AFT RETIREES REACH 200,000 MEMBERS
AFT Retirees celebrated a major milestone at the Boston Convention as the constituency reached more than 200,000 members and marked the chartering of its 100th chapter. “As the union continues to grow, so will the voice of its retirees,” said AFT vice president Kathleen Donahue, who chairs the AFT committee on retirement and retirees, at the opening session of the group’s two-day conference at the Boston convention. Former Massachusetts governor and 1988 Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis encouraged the activists to become politically active. “If we’re going to take back Congress, we have to get back to working the streets and precincts and start making personal contacts.” AFT executive vice president Toni Cortese urged participants to sign up for the AFT’s Count Me In campaign to boost unionwide activism. Conference workshops focused on the upcoming elections, Medicare Part D and recruiting and retaining members. Abe Levine, an AFT member for more than 50 years and longtime UFT leader, was honored as the 2006 Retiree of the Year.

MEDICARE PART B PREMIUMS TO INCREASE 11.2 PERCENT IN 2007
The monthly premium for Medicare Part B will increase a projected 11.2 percent next year to at least $98.40, the Bush administration announced July 12. The current monthly premium is $88.50. According to a fact sheet from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, overall Part B expenditures increased by 11 percent in 2005, including a 10 percent increase in expenditures for doctors' services and an 11 percent increase for outpatient hospital services. "The main reason for these increases in total expenditures is the rise in the volume and intensity of doctor and outpatient hospital services over the last several years," the fact sheet adds. The document cited the rapid growth in services, including imaging, doctor-administered drugs, minor procedures, physical therapy, dermatology, lab tests, and evaluation and management services.

7M MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES TO REACH PART D 'DONUT HOLE' THIS YEAR
Seven million Medicare beneficiaries will reach the gap in Medicare prescription drug coverage known as the "donut hole" this year, according to a report released in July by the Institute for America's Future and New Jersey Citizen Action. Under the donut hole provision of the standard Medicare prescription drug benefit, beneficiaries pay 100 percent of total drug costs between $2,250 and $5,100 per year. Medicare then covers 95 percent of drug costs beyond $5,100. According to the report, the average Medicare beneficiary will reach the donut hole on Sept. 22. Average total drug costs per beneficiary for 2006 will be about $3,081, according to Jeff Cruz, a senior policy analyst at Institute for America's Future. The report calls on Congress to increase benefits and authorize Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices with pharmaceutical companies.

MEDICARE DRUG PLANS OFTEN GIVE INACCURATE, INCOMPLETE INFORMATION
Customer service representatives at call centers operated by insurers sponsoring Medicare prescription drug plans provide callers with accurate and complete information about the drug plans' products and the Medicare prescription drug benefit only about one-third of the time, according to a report released July 11 by the Government Accountability Office. For the report, GAO investigators in March made 900 calls to call centers at 10 of the largest drug plan sponsors Callers reached customer service representatives in 864 of the 900 calls, the report finds. According to the report, drug plans provided accurate and complete responses during 294 of the 864 answered calls; plans provided inaccurate responses during 22 percent of the answered calls and incomplete responses during 29 percent of the answered calls; plans were unable to answer 15 percent of questions; and overall accuracy and completeness of answers ranged from 20 percent to 60 percent. Drug plans provided inaccurate or incomplete information about cost more than 70 percent of the time.

WHITE HOUSE PLANS MEDICARE CHANGES
The Bush administration says it plans sweeping changes in Medicare payments to hospitals that could cut payments by 20 percent to 30 percent for many complex treatments and new technologies. The changes, the biggest since the current payment system was adopted in 1983, are meant to improve the accuracy of payment rates. But doctors, hospitals and patient groups say the effects could be devastating. Michael O. Leavitt, the secretary of Health and Human Services, said the new system would be more accurate because payments would be based on hospital costs, rather than on charges, and would be adjusted to reflect the severity of a patient’s illness. A hospital now receives the same amount for a patient with a particular condition, like pneumonia, regardless of whether the illness is mild or severe. Medicare pays more than $125 billion a year to nearly 5,000 hospitals. The new plan is not expected to save money but will shift billions of dollars, creating clear winners and losers. The effects will ripple through the healthcare system because many private insurers and state Medicaid programs follow Medicare’s example. A coalition of patient organizations, including the Parkinson’s Action Network and the Society for Women’s Health Research, told the government in a letter that the new system “could have a devastating impact on payment for critical treatments for seriously ill patients, with reimbursement for some essential procedures cut as much as 30 percent.”

DEMONSTRATION PROJECT WOULD OFFER HSA-LIKE OPTIONS TO MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Studies on July 11 announced a demonstration project that will allow insurers to offer Medicare beneficiaries health plans with components similar to health savings accounts. Under the demonstration project, insurers would offer modified medical savings accounts to beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans. The modified MSAs would have lower annual contributions and more spending restrictions than typical private-sector HSAs. CMS provided few details about the new plans. The demonstration project is a sign that the Bush administration is beginning to integrate HSAs into Medicare in spite of a lack of interest in promoting the products in the private sector. A bill introduced in January by Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) would allow individuals with HSAs when they retire to opt out of Medicare and use the accounts and private insurance instead. The measure would provide Medicare dollars for beneficiaries either to deposit into their accounts or to pay their private insurance premiums. "The Bush administration tried to replace the guarantee of Social Security with chancy private accounts,” said Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.). “And now they're attempting the same thing with Medicare. These private accounts are a tax giveaway to the wealthy that will leave millions of seniors behind."

HSAs UNLIKELY TO REDUCE HEALTHCARE SPENDING
High deductible plans paired with health savings accounts are unlikely to reduce healthcare spending as supporters have maintained, according to a study in the July-August issue of Health Affairs. Study co-author Dahlia Remler, an associate professor of public affairs at the City University of New York, said, "Healthcare spending is highly concentrated among a small group of people who have very high medical costs. This study shows that a high-deductible HSA would have no effect on this spending, leaving a negligible impact on healthcare costs." The study indicates that cost-sharing changes aren't a cure for the nation's rising health bill at a time that so-called consumer-driven insurance—a term for policies aimed at raising consumers' out-of-pocket costs—is fashionable.

SENATE APPROVES LEGISLATION TO ALLOW
DRUG REIMPORTATION
The Senate voted 68-32 on July 11 to approve an amendment that would prohibit seizures by U.S. Customs and Border Protection of prescription drugs purchased from Canadian pharmacies by U.S. residents. Customs officials have seized thousands of packages of prescription drugs sent from Canadian pharmacies to U.S. residents since Nov. 17, 2005, when the agency began to increase enforcement of federal laws that restrict the purchase of prescription drugs from abroad. The purchase of medications from abroad is illegal, but customs and FDA officials generally have allowed the practice. Some Canadian pharmacy officials have said that they believe the increased seizures are related to the launch of the new Medicare prescription drug benefit. Customs officials in February acknowledged the increased enforcement against the purchase of medications from abroad. The House has approved two FY 2007 appropriations bills—Homeland Security and Agriculture—that include provisions to allow the purchase of prescription drugs from abroad. The Bush administration continues to oppose efforts to loosen the restrictions.

EXPECTED NLRB RULING SPARKS WEEK OF RALLIES, PROTESTS
More than 1,000 union members and labor activists, including a large AFT contingent, descended upon the National Labor Relations Board headquarters in Washington, D.C., on July 13 as part of a week of protests sponsored by the AFL-CIO in anticipation of an NLRB ruling that could strip nearly 8 million workers of their union rights. In Washington, chanting activists marched to the NLRB offices, blocked the front doors and halted downtown traffic. The NLRB is expected to hand down a decision soon that could categorize many nurses, building and construction trade workers and others as supervisors and thus ineligible for protections under the National Labor Relations Act. The board has refused to hear oral arguments as it considers the case. Those who work for a living should have the right to join and be represented by a union, said AFL-CIO executive vice president Linda Chavez-Thompson during the rally. "How can this board make a decision that affects us without listening to all sides?” The Bush NLRB has failed to hear any oral arguments since 2001. Please urge your members of Congress to tell Chairman Battista to hear oral arguments in the Kentucky River cases by clicking on http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/kentuckyriver_cases

REPORT DOCUMENTS ROLLBACKS IN WORKER PROTECTIONS
A new report prepared by Democratic staff of the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Education and the Workforce documents how the Bush administration's appointees to the National Labor Relations Board have rolled back protections for worker rights and hurt workers' ability to organize into unions and bargain collectively. An analysis of NLRB rulings found that, among other things, the board has denied labor protections to entire categories of workers, including 45,000 disabled workers and 51,000 teaching and research assistants who have lost their right to organize altogether; 2 million temporary workers who have had their right to organize severely limited; and as many as 8 million charge nurses and other workers facing the loss of their organizing rights. The board also has ruled in favor of company policies that chill organizing and trample human rights, such as no off-duty fraternizing rules, greater leeway for union-busting lockouts, and ever weaker remedies for labor law violations.

WHITE HOUSE PROPOSES $721 B FOR SOCIAL SECURITY PRIVATIZATION
The Bush administration released its mid-session budget review in mid-July, including a proposal to spend $721 billion over the next 10 years to privatize Social Security—$9 billion more than originally proposed. In a speech on the budget, President Bush specifically alluded to the cuts in Social Security benefits that would be required as part of his plan. Americans United, a coalition strongly supported by the AFT that was crucial to beating back privatization efforts last year, is mounting a renewed campaign to call attention to individual lawmaker’s positions on the issue. The group is drafting scripts for a national media campaign against candidates and incumbents, including Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) and Rep. Clay Shaw (R-Fla.).

AMERICANS NOT RETIRING WHEN THEY PLAN
For those planning to continue working past 60, a recent USA Today article reports some sobering statistics that may put a wrench in those plans. Nearly half of baby boomers expect to work past 65, but the average age current retirees left the workforce was 59, according to a survey by consulting firm McKinsey & Co. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 60 percent of 60 year-olds, 32 percent of 65- year-olds and only 19 percent of 70-year-olds were employed in 2005. Health problems and job loss or company downsizing were the two most common causes cited for earlier-than-planned retirements. A study by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College found that a younger worker is over 40 percent more likely to be called for an interview than a worker age 50 or older, despite the experience difference.

MANY HOSPICE PATIENTS SURVIVE, LIVE LONGER LIVES THAN PREDICTED
Centers for Disease Control data indicate that an estimated 100,000 hospice patients will leave hospice care this year. About two-thirds of hospice patients die within 30 days, according to the CDC. For Medicaid and Medicare beneficiaries to cover hospice care, the patient's doctor and the hospice's doctor must agree that the patient will die within six months. If a patient does survive six months but is not likely to survive another six months, the patient remains in hospice. Patients who survive six months are discharged if their condition has improved and stabilized enough that they are likely to live another six months. One study estimates that about one-third of those who leave hospice die within six months of their release. About 5,000 to 20,000 hospice survivors annually live on, while the remainder is transferred to nursing homes. The explanation? In many cases, doctors inaccurately estimated how long a patient had to live due in part to the difficulty of diagnosing patients with dementia.

TAX CUTS ADD TO DEBT BURDEN
The net share of the national debt for 99 percent of Americans has jumped by more than $7,000 per person over the past six years, according to a report by Citizens for Tax Justice. As a result of the Bush administration tax cuts, the national debt has grown to $8.4 trillion and is being paid for with borrowed money, such as money owed to the Social Security Trust Fund. The only Americans spared paying for this debt are the most wealthy 1 percent, those who have an average income of more than $1.2 million a year. Everyone else received an average tax break of $2,616 from 2001 to 2006, however, the average debt burden rose by $9,782 per person, leaving a net debt of $7,166 per person. For the wealthiest 1 percent, the tax breaks outweigh the added debt burden by a net average of $30,352 per family member.

ENTERTAINMENT DISCOUNTS FOR AFT MEMBER
The AFT + Member Benefits program offers entertainment discounts that save members money on purchases such as movie tickets, amusement park admissions, movie rentals from Blockbuster and even theater tickets. The AFT + Entertainment Discounts Program also offers reduced prices for museums, aquariums, zoos, ski lift tickets for New England ski resorts, and sporting events. Many more options are available as well. To start saving, call 800/565-3712 (use ID# 744387769) or go to http://www.unionplus.org/entertainment

QUOTE OF NOTE: Inaccurate Information on
Medicare Part D
"The lack of accurate and understandable information for our seniors has been a chronic problem since the beginning of Medicare Part D. Senior citizens are being hurt by the indifference and incompetence of the Bush administration and its friends in the insurance industry."
U.S. Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.)

WEB SITE OF THE WEEK: http://seniortravel.about.com/od/tours/ht/how_pick.htm
How do you pick the right tour? This site features a few simple questions, such as pace of tour, operator’s willingness to answer questions, to help you choose the right tour.