NBC's Gregory misleadingly reported that Medicare drug program "close" to 39 million "enrolled"
On the May 9 edition of NBC's Nightly News, NBC chief White House correspondent David Gregory misleadingly claimed that "Medicare is close to reaching its goal of 39 million seniors around the country enrolled in" the Part D prescription-drug program by the deadline of May 15. In fact, only 19.7 million seniors are actually "enrolled" in the program, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), which based its conclusions on the most recent Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) statistics. Even considering the 10.3 million seniors whose prescription-drug coverage is subsidized by Medicare through their retiree benefits package, the total is still only 30 million.
Medicare is "close" to reaching its January 2005 prediction that 39 million seniors will receive benefits from the program only if one also counts the 5.8 million seniors who, according to HHS estimates, have prescription-drug coverage equivalent to Medicare but receive no money from Medicare -- hardly seniors "enrolled in the program," as Gregory described them.
Gregory's claim went further even than a tally given by President Bush at a May 9 Medicare event in Sun City Center, Florida. At the event, Bush said that 31 million seniors had "signed up" for the coverage, apparently combining the 19.7 million who are enrolled in Part D (of which only 8 million "signed up" -- the others either were automatically enrolled or receive coverage through a Medicare HMO or PPO) and the 10.3 million whose external prescription-drug coverage is being subsidized. Bush went on to say that "6 million more [people] have an alternative source of coverage" -- presumably referring to the estimated number of seniors who have prescription-drug coverage outside the Medicare program -- and concluded that "37 million of the little more than 42 million people [who are eligible] ... have got coverage, and we're working hard to sign up the remaining eligible seniors."
From the May 9 edition of NBC's Nightly News:
BRIAN WILLIAMS (anchor): President Bush was in Florida today where he was talking up the Medicare prescription-drug program. More than 6 million seniors in this country have just six days to sign up before the enrollment deadline May 15th. With us tonight for more on this, NBC News chief White House correspondent David Gregory. And, David, what's the political angle here?
GREGORY: Well, Brian, the White House hopes this is a political winner for Republicans who are running for re-election this fall. The key to this is enrollment. Medicare is close to reaching its goal of 39 million seniors around the country enrolled in the program by the deadline, but as you mentioned, there are a lot of seniors left behind, including the poorest among them. So there are Democrats who are now calling for an extension of that deadline to deal with that problem, as well as some of the other complaints -- that there are simply too many choices and a lot of confusion. Democrats, too, hammering Medicare to actually negotiate with the drug companies lower prices for prescription drugs. So this is going to be a political football for both parties this fall, Brian.
WILLIAMS: Thanks, David. David Gregory at the White House tonight.
...this program in 2007. The program could have been implemented for less and produced a better outcome for the receipients if the Republicans hadn't allowed Pharma to author the policy.
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"Another Democratic target is the Medicare prescription drug program, which bars the government from forcing pharmaceutical companies to give price discounts."
<[link to msnbc.msn.com]
The program was WRITTEN by the drug companies and according to a nurse practitioner I know it is DESIGNED to catch if you will most seniors into paying more for their drugs. If you are lucky and happen to not need many drugs and get the right plan and don't need to get drugs in the future that aren't on your particular plan...well you are all right then.
The thing is corporate welfare for drug companies plain and simple. Just hand the cash over and everything will be fine.
Absolute joke and an unmitigated disaster for older folks. I am so glad I am not there for quite a while.
The program was overly complicated but you try to sign up 30 million people to a new program.
The program will not trick seniors into paying more for drugs.
In fact, most seniors are happy with the program and it is saving them substantial amounts of money and provides catastrophic protection.
Having the government negotiate down drug prices would be a disaster. Hell, they pay $500 for hammers and you want them to negotiate drug prices? Did you like it when they hammered the profit out of the flu vaccine and one glitch caused a national disaster? Imagine how many senior would die if the government negotiated down a drug price so the low the manufacturer had to cut costs down so low a problem occurred and there were massive shortages?
You people slay me. You bitch and bitch about how bad FEMA was and the CIA and you want the government to control our lifesaving drugs?? You both are insane.
I saw that and was somewhat incredulous as I had just heard on the radio the "less than twenty million" number.
I can't help but wonder, why these people either shill for the Administration or are just too damned lazy to go look it up. Are the news outlets so short handed they can't even bother to check for real figures.
No wonder we keep voting the ReThugs into office, the press only repeats what they are told rather than verify it.
Worst media in our modern history.
He's intellectually lazy and incapable of asking a follow-up question to a previous answer. He's proven that on Hardball several times. I suppose someone threw out the 39 million number, and Gregory never asked the source of the information. He may be bilingual (French), but it's very poossible that he's a careerist and an incompetent in both English and French.
... that the Republicans, the Bushies, and their minions in the Media realize that there must be created a FANTASY WORLD in order to try to make Republicans look like they're doing a good job. The TRUTH must be avoided at every opportunity.
Thus, FICTION must rule the day, on health care policy, on the economy, on Iraq, on EVERYTHING. Rove has created a Fantasy World in which everything is just hunky dory ... the war's going great, intelligence folks are just operating in our best interest, the Elderly are getting optimum care at minimum price, and gas prices are just "supply and demand". No reason to worry about the debt, don't fret about jobs, America never had it so good!
Truly, Rove cannot even be blamed for telling these Fairy Tales. After all, his job is to spin the truth to make Republicans and Bush "Look Good".
But the PRESS? Their job is to report THE TRUTH. The FACTS, which either support or contradict what our government is telling us. In this instance, as MMFA demonstrated, the Administration is claiming a SUCCESS in "enrollment" which is simply not supported by the facts. They are LYING to us.
The media can, of course, operate as they see fit. They can either fulfill the duty to the American People as being advocates of an informed electorate, relentless seekers of the TRUTH, and independent skeptical reporters of what is really going on.
OR, they can be whores to a special interest, the Republican party.
Unfortunately for America, MOST of the "mainstream" media has chosen to become sycophantic parrots of the White House's lying talking points, unquestioning and uncritical. Why do they make this choice? It would seem to be the oldest rationale on the books: MONEY.