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I'm an Iowan. My feet are dry.. all Praise to God. So, I will say what is on the minds of a lot of Iowans that are busy trying to hold their families together right now. These flood victims are no less worthy of help than New Orleans residents. To totally ignore them is like an elephant in the room. Why are you ignoring us? Are we too humble? Are we too unworthy because we help ourselves and each other? Are we the wrong class? The wrong color? The wrong location? Are we too quiet? Or are we not something...

Migration has brought 'zero' economic benefit By Philip Johnston and Robert Winnett Last Updated: 1:11am GMT 29/03/2008 Ten years of record immigration to Britain has produced virtually no economic benefits for the country, a parliamentary inquiry has found. A House of Lords committee, which is due to report next Tuesday, will call into question Government claims that foreign workers add £6 billion each year to the wealth of the nation. It is expected to say this must be balanced against the increase in population and their use of local services such as health and education, resulting in little benefit per...

If we look to benefits only, we'll do darn near anything because there's always a benefit. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported there were 43,443 highway fatalities in 2005. If we had a maximum speed law of 15 miles per hour, the death toll wouldn't be nearly as high, probably not even as high as 500. You say, "Williams, that's a crazy idea." You're right, but let's not call it crazy; it's more accurate to say: saving some 43,000 lives aren't worth the cost and inconvenience of a 15 mph speed limit. Given a 1 percent risk of a...

Contact: Lindsey M. Brothers (202) 547-4713 Armed Forces Foundation -PRESS RELEASE- Armed Forces Foundation Unveils Commemorative Military Bass Boat Boat To Be Auctioned Off At Armed Forces Foundation’s Congressional Gala In March Washington, DC (February 11, 2008) – The Armed Forces Foundation (AFF), a national nonprofit benevolent foundation under the Department of Defense’s America Supports You program, is proud to unveil its Ranger 188VX tournament-ready bass boat at ESPN’s 2008 Bassmaster Classic. The tournament will be held from February 22nd-24th on Lake Hartwell in Greenville, S.C. The boat will be auctioned March 5th, at the 4th Annual Armed Forces Foundation’s...

NEW YORK, Nov. 8, 2007 – Laughter and song can be indispensible weapons for wounded servicemembers undergoing painful convalescence, as hope and anguish battle for primacy. Last night, A-listers such as comedians Conan O’Brien and Robin Williams and musician Bruce Springsteen helped some move closer to recovery. Marine Sgt. James Bane, Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel Hurst, comedian Robin Williams and Marine Lance Cpl. James Scott MacKenzie pose for photos Nov. 7, 2007, before "Stand Up for Heroes," a comedy and music event in New York City arranged by the Bob Woodruff Family Fund to raise money for servicemembers injured...

Brown 'plans to get a million people off benefit' By Graeme Wilson, Political Correspondent Last Updated: 1:15am BST 20/06/2007 Gordon Brown will press ahead with plans to put private firms and voluntary groups in charge of getting one million people off sickness benefits and back to work, a senior Cabinet minister will pledge today. John Hutton, the Work and Pensions Secretary, will warn Labour left-wingers that they will be "disappointed" if they expect the incoming Prime Minister to slacken the pace of welfare reform. His pledge will alarm Labour activists and the trade unions, who have vowed to resist the...

Iraqi Villages Benefit from Army Engineers' Mission Army water well projects improve the lives of several thousands of Iraqi residents By Lana Aziz Gulf Region North, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Iraq ERBIL PROVINCE, Iraq, April 24, 2007 — More than 26,000 residents in 13 villages receive potable water now due to 13 water well projects recently completed as part of the Iraq Reconstruction Program. "I am grateful for all other projects which are done and which are under construction by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that positively impacted the Kurdish people." Nawzad Hadi, the governor of Erbil The...

Benefit cheats face telephone lie detector tests By George Jones, Political Editor Last Updated: 2:54pm BST 05/04/2007 What is voice-risk analysis? How to beat a lie detector test Lie detector technology will be used by the Government to help identify and deter benefit cheats, John Hutton, Work and Pensions Secretary, announced today. Lie detector test technology has moved on significantly in recent years Voice-risk analysis (VRA) software, already used by the insurance industry, will be used to monitor telephone calls by claimants. It can detect minute changes in a caller's voice which give clues as to when they may be...

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Older men who drink moderate amounts of alcohol may function better physically than either those who abstain completely or those who abuse alcohol, a new study suggests. Moderate drinkers tend to be healthier in general than teetotalers or problem drinkers, Dr. Peggy M. Cawthon of California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco and colleagues note. There is also evidence that moderate drinking may reduce inflammation. Cawthon and colleagues compared functional limitations, physical performance and drinking history for 5,962 men aged 65 or older who were classified into 5 categories. Men who consumed 5 or more...

A proposal to amend California's term limits law has been revised to ensure that Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata would be eligible to serve an extra four-year term. The editing change, made Friday, targets a special circumstance that applies to only one sitting lawmaker, Perata. Gale Kaufman, a Democratic political consultant who helped launch the initiative drive, said the rewording simply clarifies what has been the intent all along. "It isn't doing anything other than what we thought we did to begin with," Kaufman said. But critics said the alteration adds to their contention that the initiative is a...

TIKRIT — More than 112,000 people in the Salah Al Den Province are receiving healthcare from the first completed PrimaryHealthcare Center in the north. Built by local construction companies with quality assurance managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, this $3.35 million dollar facility provides routine and initial emergency care to patients including X-ray, laboratories and dentistry. Medical supplies and laboratory equipment were included in the contract to make this facility complete and operational. Currently, there are 47 Primary Healthcare Centers under construction in the northern region of Iraq. Seven of those are located in the Salah Al Den...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 20, 2006 – Marine Lance Cpl. James Gentile’s path in life was forcibly altered when he was shot in the face while on patrol with Gulf Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines in Ramadi, Iraq. That was in April 2004, just a few days after his 21st birthday. His path is about to change again, thanks to the community of San Juan Capistrano, Calif., and the California-based nonprofit organization, Homefront America. The two entities are planning a fundraiser to benefit Gentile. Homefront America works to honor servicemembers by supporting their families while they’re deployed, according to the organization’s Web...

Smith’s Olde Bar to Host THE GEORGIA LIBERTARIAN BENEFIT CONCERT August 29, 2006- Atlanta: *thinkLIBERTARIAN.com* is proud to announce a benefit concert for the Libertarian Party of Georgia to be held at Smith’s Olde Bar, October 12th. Local Atlanta bands have agreed to perform this show to raise money for Libertarian Party outreach projects. “With access to the bands, a great venue, and the elections only a few weeks away, it seemed like a great idea.” says Mark Augustyn, founder of thinkLIBERTARIAN.com. “Music has been an important part of every successful social and political movement; the Libertarian Party is no...

Animal Rescue Volunteers Present: Wag n' Walk Walk to Benefit Homeless & Abused Animals Saturday, September 30, 2006 Arroyo Simi Equestrian Center 3495 Chickory Leaf Place, Simi Valley (Located off Sequoia Ave, Just South of Royal Road) 8:00 am Check-In & Breakfast/ 9:00am Opening Ceremony & Walk begins Walk with your dog, your friends, family or by yourself! Fabulous PRIZES to be awarded to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place top fundraisers! Festivities Include: 3 mile walk starting in the beautiful equestrian center, taking you through the surronding areas, *Breakfast * fun opening ceremony * incentive prizes * silent auction*...

WASHINGTON, August 1, 2006 -- Golf enthusiasts put their skills on the line to benefit two troop-support programs during the “Birdies for the Brave” golf outing at Tournament Players Club Avenel, in Potomac, Md., July 27. The event featured a morning golf clinic conducted by Birdies for the Brave founder and spokesman, reigning Masters champion Phil Mickelson, according to a Birdies for the Brave news release. During an afternoon reception, Mickelson thanked attendees for their participation and their donations to his effort to support the troops. Mickelson has pledged to donate $100 for every birdie and $500 for every eagle...

Top elected officials in California who leave office in January could be eligible for lifetime pension benefits based on a salary they had earned for only about four weeks. The oddity would apply to Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante, for example, if he loses to Republican Steve Poizner in his current campaign to become insurance commissioner. Claude Parrish, currently a Board of Equalization member, also could benefit from the pension sweetener if he is defeated in the Nov. 7 election for state treasurer, state records show. --snip-- The potential windfall stems from a little-known provision in state law coupled with...

Iraqi Communities Benefit From Projects Local contractors, civilian work force, local neighborhoods benefit from Civil Affairs projects. By U.S. Army Spc. William Jones 133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment TIKRIT, Iraq, July 17, 2006-- One Iraqi community after another is benefiting from the efforts of people working together to improve the infrastructure of Iraq after years of neglect and war and at the same time putting the labor force back to work. "This helps to improve their infrastructure and it gives them an economic base." Capt. Jonathan Walden These behind-the-scenes people are working closely with the local Iraqi leadership to...

Scandal Woes Could Benefit Jefferson, Analysts SayRandy Hall Staff Writer/Editor (CNSNews.com) - Losing his seat on the influential Ways and Means Committee and being investigated in a federal bribery probe could actually benefit U.S. Rep. William Jefferson (D-La.), political analysts told Cybercast News Service. "Oftentimes, being an embattled Louisiana politician can actually be a benefit," said Pearson Cross, assistant professor of political science at the University of Louisiana Lafayette. "If anything, I think voters in the state's 2nd District are going to see him as 'put upon,' that he was unfairly stripped, and I'm certain he's going to spin it...

President Bush on Thursday signed a $94.5 billion emergency spending bill to fund hurricane relief and the Iraq war that includes $30.4 million for Sacramento flood protection and levee repairs. The money includes $23.3 million targeted for 29 levee sites that state officials say represent an urgent risk. Last month, the state and federal governments agreed to allow expedited environmental reviews so those projects can be completed by Nov. 1. State officials now estimate the total cost of repairing those levees at less than $150 million. The remaining $7.1 million is for stream repairs in south Sacramento. The total was...

BAGHDAD, April 26, 2006 – While success in Iraq's march to freedom would mean good things for most of its neighbors, Iran could only view that as a failure, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said here today. Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are here to meet with U.S. and Iraqi officials. "A successful Iraq that is at peace with its neighbors and that has a government that's representative of the various elements within the country would represent an enormous success for this region," Rumsfeld said. "It would add to prosperity for the region. It would be something that...

An unemployed German man with no legs has been told to get a job picking asparagus.Winfried Gutschwager, 47, said he was outraged when he received a letter from his local job centre saying they had found him a job harvesting asparagus. "My disability was clearly recorded when I went to sign on for benefits. They simply have no respect for anybody," said the Berlin man, who lost his legs to diabetes last May. Job centre spokesman Andreas Kanter, 51, apologised saying: "It was an unfortunate mistake due to the fact the client's records had not been updated." It is not...

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2006 – The Ad Council has teamed with the Defense Department's "America Supports You" program to help drum up support for American servicemembers. This ad is part of the launch of a national public service advertising campaign by the Defense Department and the Ad Council to show support for America's military.  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Launched in November 2004, America Supports You is a Web-based program that highlights grassroots and corporate support for America's troops. The program's Web site, www.AmericaSupportsYou.mil, showcases ways Americans can provide support and helps put servicemembers and their families in...

Iraqis Benefit From Coalition Medical Training The 690th Medical Company is teaming up with Iraqi medics to help evaluate what training and supplies they need to become self-sufficient. By U.S. Army Sgt. Waine D. Haley 133rd Mobile Public Affairs Detachment SAMARRA, Iraq, March 23, 2006 — As the U.S. Army implements President Bush’s statement of “they stand-up and we stand-down�, it is every aspect of Iraq that Coalition Forces are helping to restore. The Military Transition Team for the 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne, are teaming up all sections of the Regiment to help build a well-rounded...

Benefit reform to end 'perverse incentives' By George Jones, Political Editor (Filed: 24/01/2006) Nearly three million people claiming incapacity benefits will be required to take part in efforts to get back into work or face having their benefit cut under plans to be unveiled by the Government today. Tony Blair said yesterday the Government's welfare reform green paper would seek to end the "perverse incentives" which encouraged people to stay on the benefit rather than find a job. According to figures published by the Liberal Democrats yesterday, the number of people claiming IB has risen since Labour came to power...

http://www.tunicamiss.org/ If you're free this Sunday afternoon, take in a series of great performances and enjoy a leisure afternoon of fun in The Delta!

SACRAMENTO (AP) - From afar, Treasurer Phil Angelides and Controller Steve Westly appeared to get a big boost out of the closing days of the special election. The two declared Democratic candidates for governor were busy last weekend courting the base, getting lots of TV time and vigorously denouncing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's ballot agenda. But a closer look showed much of the spotlight went instead to two other Democrats who also were out on the campaign trail last week - Hollywood stars Warren Beatty and Rob Reiner, neither of whom have said they want to run for governor. Still, some...

Tall Afar Residents Benefit from Rebuilding A visible sign that the Tall Afar district has stabilized is that vendors are operating and residents are conducting business. By Polli Keller Gulf Region North U.S. Army Corps of Engineers MOSUL, Iraq, Nov. 10, 2005 — Despite 25 years of neglect and a costly insurgency, the infrastructure of Tall Afar, Iraq, is rebounding. Now that the city is secure, its residents will benefit as the economy is growing and Iraqi leadership is ready to rebuild the municipal infrastructure. The rebuilding process is having a positive impact on the lives of its residents,...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 26, 2005 – Spectators going to the Virginia Tech vs. Boston College football game Oct. 27 will not only see a game with Bowl Championship Series implications, but a chance to help children in Iraq. "Operation Provide Classroom Comfort" is the brainchild of a Virginia Tech alumnus who went into Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division in March 2003. Army Maj. Mark Sherkey, an intern in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, hopes to gather enough school supplies for 4,000 Iraqi students and equipment for 10 schools. Sherkey, a 1995 Virginia Tech graduate, was a captain and...

Dell plant supporters oppose lawsuit 10/13/2005 9:21 AM By: Associated Press GREENSBORO, N.C. -- A motion filed in Wake County Superior Court asks for the dismissal of a lawsuit challenging the roughly $300 million incentives deal with Dell Inc. The motion was filed Wednesday on behalf of the state, the city of Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, Dell and others. The North Carolina Institute for Constitutional Law charges in its lawsuit filed in June that the incentives violate state constitutional prohibitions against the use of public resources for private benefit and fail to treat taxpayers equally. In exchange for creating at least...

Work is estimated to be completed in about one year at an estimated cost of $29 million and will be performed by Iraqi subcontractors. BAGHDAD, Iraq, Sept. 30, 2005 — A substation expansion project in Mosul will increase the existing capacity of the 400 kV Mosul substation to allow for an additional 400 kV transmission line between Mosul and Baghdad. The Mosul substation expansion is a critical, electric grid system element to increase the amount of available power to the entire country. The expansion provides the capacity to distribute power more reliably, thereby affecting six million people. The project serves...

In the wake of Katrina, Sen. John McCain says the budget deficit is so dire that the Medicare prescription drug benefit should be scrapped. Gloria Borger reports.

First of all, the lyrics say it all: "Blue Monday" written and arranged by Alexis Dean pka Skillbill copyright 2005 Chorus: Blue Monday I can’t stand the rain It’s a shame it came I can’t imagine your pain Blue Monday Things will never be the same But some way we got to maintain Blue Monday 1st verse A tragedy that we don’t understand let’s help our fellow man you see them reaching out their hands who saw it coming "damn" I never saw it coming "slam" but we’re all Americans Katrina got my country looking like a foreign land I...

America's most listened to talk radio host Rush Limbaugh will hit Broadway next month with a one man show to fund relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. "Rush on Broadway" will open for a one-day-only performance on Tuesday Oct. 18 at the New Amsterdam Theater on 42nd Street. The show will feature a special introduction by ABC Radio host Sean Hannity. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 10am. Plans for Limbaugh's Broadway debut were apparently finalized late Thursday - the top talker made no mention of the production during his regular midday broadcast. However WABC -...

Edited By Jonathan Cohen. August 31, 2005, 3:20 PM ET DMB Show To Benefit Katrina Victims By Ray Waddell, Nashville Dave Matthews Band is the first act to come forward with a benefit show for Hurricane Katrina victims, Billboard.com has learned. It is expected to be announced tomorrow (Sept. 1) that DMB will add a fourth date to its Sept. 9-11 sellouts at Red Rocks near Denver, with proceeds from the Sept. 12 show to benefit Katrina victims. Tickets will go on sale next week. Meanwhile, Katrina is making its presence felt in the touring industry. Among the large venues...

SANTA FE (AP) - Businessman Gerald Peters, a friend and campaign contributor to Gov. Bill Richardson, has bought a ranch near Chama that could benefit from a tax break for private hunting resorts that the governor signed into law this year. Peters purchased the 12,463-acre Quinlan Ranch for $14 million, according to documents filed three weeks ago in Rio Arriba County. The ranch is in prime elk country near another ranch in which he owns an interest, according to a spokeswoman for Peters, whose holdings include art galleries, restaurants and commercial property. "It's just a beautiful area he's loved and...

SACRAMENTO – State lawmakers are no longer sitting on the sidelines as the San Diego Chargers scramble to build a $450 million stadium under the city's haunting fiscal cloud. Legislation to create a state bonding authority that could help the Chargers secure tax-free financing for a new home is on a steady march through the Legislature and to the governor's desk. Where that home might be has been a matter of speculation in recent years. While the Chargers insist they want to stay in San Diego, the prospect of moving north has added intrigue to their quest for a new...

Pakistani politician got paid £1,000 a month in UK benefits By Daniel Foggo and Massoud Ansari (Filed: 12/06/2005) A prominent Pakistani politician has been receiving British state benefits to which he was not entitled while living in a palatial home in Karachi. As the governor of Sindh province in Pakistan, Dr Ishrat-Ul-Ebad Khan lives in a mansion in the state capital while being waited on by servants and chauffeured in Mercedes limousines. Dr Ishrat-Ul-Ebad Khan Yet, while enjoying the perks of his position, Dr Khan was for 10 months the recipient of money from the benefits system, including income support...

By GAO (Government Accounting Office) estimates the "prescription drug benefit" program INCREASED BY 26% IN 2004, all historically accumulated, future spending obligations and committments of the U.S., including SS, Medicare, vet benefits, etc., accumulated throughout U.S. history, since before Roosvelt. http://www.babylontoday.com/#gao_financial The prescription drug benefit is the 8.1 trillion dollar portion, of the 13 trillion dollar increase, to a total 43 trillion, of current U.S. future spending obligation. But don't worry, according to the GAO, that only represents a $350,000 obligation per full-time worker in the U.S., SO FAR! But sadly the following demonstrates that the spending will be much...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Viagra, the blockbuster impotence drug, will be paid for under Medicare's new prescription drug coverage, officials said on Tuesday. A new prescription drug coverage law that takes effect next year means the government health insurance plan for the elderly must offer to help pay for medically necessary drugs, the officials said. That would include sildenafil, sold by Pfizer under the brand name Viagra, and other erectile dysfunction drugs. "If it's an illness then Medicare can cover it," a Health and Human Services (news - web sites) spokesman said. "There is no new broad Medicare rule to cover...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will call for a dramatic overhaul of the state's public employee pension system in his State of the State speech this afternoon, administration officials confirmed Tuesday. In a move certain to trigger a major confrontation with some of the state's most powerful labor unions, Schwarzenegger aides said the governor will sponsor a package of pension bills for introduction at a special legislative session he intends to call for Thursday. If the Legislature doesn't adopt the sweeping proposals, aides said, he'll take them to the ballot box - with several other so-called "reform" measures - in a special...

Vang" is one of just 18 tribal names in the Hmong culture. It happens to be the name of Chai Soua Vang, the St. Paul man charged with shooting eight Rice Lake, Wis., hunters Nov. 21, killing six of them. After the incident, some Twin Ports Hmong residents often were asked if they were related to the suspect, or if they knew him, said Cher Pao Vang of Superior, Wis. They don't know him. But they do want to help the families and surviving victims of the incident, which shocked the nation and set Minnesota and Wisconsin Hmong communities on...

On Monday, December 8, 2003, President Bush signed into law a Medicare prescription drug benefits package designed to help American seniors pay for their medications. This month, the Kerry campaign released a TV ad attacking President Bush’s Medicare record stating, “The very next day George Bush imposes the biggest Medicare premium increase in history while prescription drug costs still skyrocket.” There are several problems with this ad, namely that fact that 1) Kerry skipped the December 8 vote and 2) Kerry voted to support the increase in Medicare premiums that he now criticizes. The Kerry campaign offers no specifics on...

<p>In January 1999, state Sen. Don Perata's 26-year-old son, Nick, launched a political direct mail firm based at his father's Alameda home.</p> <p>Within months, the son's firm, Exit Strategies, was receiving tens of thousands of dollars in revenue from the father's Senate campaign committee. At the same time, Exit Strategies began paying consulting fees and rent to the senator, state records and interviews show.</p>

Ex-Televangelist to Hold AIDS Drag Benefit Mon Dec 22, 8:02 AM ET DURHAM, N.C. - Former televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker Messner will headline a drag bingo benefit for AIDS here next month. The Alliance of AIDS Services-Carolina, which serves people with HIV and AIDS in Durham, Orange and Wake counties, is organizing the fund-raiser at the Durham Armory on Jan. 2. The headliner was a source of surprise to at least one group official. "When they told me, I said, 'Oh, this is not going to work' — far right and all that," acting executive director Jacquelyn Clymore said Friday....

MD Author's New DVD Benefits 9/11 Causes Preview for free today: Carolyn Long's newly released DVD and poem, "Angels Over America," is a spectacular tribute to 9/11 victims and heroes, benefits 9/11 causes, and inspires everyone who sees it. View video or read poem at www.angelsoveramerica.com . "The way we remember September 11, 2001, will shape our future," says Ms. Long. "We must never forget that tragic day, and we must never forget what got us through it - our courage, our compassion, and our commitment to preserving the American Spirit - that spirit of freedom known to all the...

28 May-The principal challenge facing the international community is to ensure that globalization becomes a positive force for all the world's people, instead of leaving millions behind in poverty and squalor, a senior United Nations communications official told ministers meeting today in Bangkok to discuss challenges facing the broadcasting industry in Asia and the Pacific. "One thing is already clear. Dollar signs and GNP tables are no longer the only elements dividing the haves and the have-nots," said Shashi Tharoor, Under Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information. "Access to information is increasingly vital for development and prosperity." Speaking on...

‘Gay’ Group Slashes Homosexual Partner Benefits for Own Employees 3/12/2003 By CFI Staff National Gay and Lesbian Task Force calls them 'prohibitively expensive' WASHINGTON, D.C. — A leading homosexual activist group has cut in half domestic partner benefits for its employees’ lovers. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, which is working to force corporations to adopt such benefits for its homosexual employees, reportedly said that the costs were "prohibitively expensive." The homosexual newspaper Washington Blade reported that the Task Force slashed partner benefits in half, following a plea by its outgoing executive director, Lorri Jean, that the lovers' benefits...

<p>There's a tangled web of relationships between some of CalPERS' most powerful board members and the venture capital funds that receive CalPERS' investments through a middleman, Grove Street Advisors.</p> <p>Grove Street Advisors, a consultant firm, has committed $2.9 billion of CalPERS' money into 150 venture capital funds. CalPERS has so far resisted the release of the financial performance of those funds -- which are among the worst performing and most risky.</p>

$8 Billion Surplus Withers at Agency Insuring Pensions By MARY WILLIAMS WALSH January 25, 2003 he federal agency that insures the pensions of some 44 million Americans has been pounded by a succession of big corporate bankruptcies and has burned through its entire $8 billion surplus in one year. The agency, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, provides protection to retirees in case of a failure, much as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation protects depositors when a bank fails. Though it can continue to make its current payments, the agency is expected to disclose a deficit of $1 billion to $2...

CHAPTER 2 Design Choices for aMedicare Drug Benefit In designing a drug benefit for Medicare, policymakers must make four fundamental decisions: How comprehensive will the coverage be? Who will be eligible to enroll? To what extent will the government pay enrollees' costs? How and by whom will the drug program be administered? The answers to each of those questions will have a major impact on the program's cost to the federal government and to enrollees. (This chapter and the next describe, in general, how various approaches to those choices affect costs. Specific cost estimates for particular proposals are discussed...