Daschle Statement on Passage of Medicare Legislation

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Tom Daschle ^ | November 25, 2003 | Senator Tom Daschle

[sopwith]

Daschle Statement on Passage of Medicare Legislation

WASHINGTON, DC - Senator Tom Daschle released the following statement today on final passage of the Medicare legislation. "This is a sad day for the millions of seniors who were counting on Congress to help them afford their prescription drugs. As a result of this bill, millions of seniors in South Dakota and across the country will actually pay more for their prescriptions and millions of retirees will lose the good coverage they have today. They include 2.7 million retirees who will lose their current coverage and 6.4 million of the lowest-income seniors, who will have to pay more or lose access to the drugs they need.

"This bill takes billions of dollars that ought to be used to help seniors pay for prescriptions and lavishes on drug companies and HMOs. It doesn't address the fundamental problem, which is that prescription drugs are too expensive for many Americans. It actually prohibits Medicare from negotiating a good deal for seniors and it will prevent people from importing lower-cost drugs from Canada and other countries. Many seniors already understand what a betrayal this is and they're furious.

"Congress is going to have to come back and fix the damage this bill will inflict on Medicare and on seniors. Democrats intend to lead that fight, just as we have led the fight for prescription drug coverage for every senior for many years.

"One part of this bill that does reflect genuine progress is the equity for rural health care providers. This is critical for South Dakota and many other states and it's something I've worked on for a long time. These changes have broad bipartisan support and they could have been accomplished without putting millions of seniors at risk."

[TexasCajun]

"I'm saddened and concerned that the Republicans are now acting like Democrats giving away hard-earned tax-payer money!"

"I'm saddened and concerned that many of my fellow Democrats are just as stupid as the President"

-Little Tommy-

[facedown]

Cry me a river, little snot-nosed Tommy.

[milan]

Who's Tom Daschle?

[sirchtruth]

I'm saddened and concerned that many of my fellow Democrats are just as stupid as the President

I'm sorry STUPID doesn't wash any more for this President. He proves you wrong and wrong, again and again.

What are you gonna call him when he wins four more years, Pudden-head?

[alloysteel]

A failed former Air Force officer and water boy for the regime of the "Former Occupant of the Oval Office, 1993-2001", now part of a claque of the professional negative campaigners, who have chosen to believe in the veracity of any member of al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and the Ba'athist Socialist regime that once held power in Iraq.

Well, you asked who he was.

[sopwith]

"Cry me a river"
BUMP.

[grania]

So, Tom Daschle got what he wanted, help for rural hospitals, and now figures he can get the rest of this boondoggle overturned? What a fool.

[Feckless]

"This is a sad day for the millions of seniors who were counting on Congress to help them afford their prescription drugs."

Translation: "This is a sad day for the Demonratz who were counting on old geezers to help beat Bush."

On the other hand I am totally against yet another socialist wealth transfer scheme no matter who did it.

[freeangel]

I happened to see this little rant and he reminded me of Kruschev banging his shoe on the table.

[savedbygrace]

Someone correct me where I'm wrong, but isn't Tiny Tom saying that those who earn more than $80,000 a year are disqualified from this plan?

So the Dims are suddenly fighting for the poor rich people, the same group they complain about most of the time.

[crz]

The only reason this was voted on now was because most will forget about it when the next election come round and to use it as a big political ploy with the elderly. In that it was a check mate agianst the socialists like Tom Thumb Dashole.