FEINGOLD URGES HHS SECRETARY TO SUPPORT SENIORCARE, BADGERCARE During Budget Committee Hearing, Feingold Opposes Administration’s Budget Proposal Which Negatively Impacts Successful Wisconsin Health Care Programs February 13, 2007 Watch or listen to Feingold advocate for SeniorCare and BadgerCare. Washington DC – During a Senate Budget Committee Hearing today, U.S. Senator Russ Feingold questioned Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt about the Administration’s proposed budget that negatively impacts SeniorCare, a prescription assistance program for Wisconsin seniors, and BadgerCare, Wisconsin’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. Under the Administration’s budget proposal for fiscal year 2008, both programs would lose federal dollars. “In my fourteen years of traveling around Wisconsin, health care is consistently one of the top issues on the minds of Wisconsinites and recently, I’ve heard a lot of frustration from seniors about the new Medicare Part D program,” Feingold said. “It makes no sense to me that the Administration would propose cutting a program like SeniorCare which is more popular and less expensive than the Administration’s flawed alternative. The Administration can easily fix this by granting SeniorCare its waiver application.” There are currently 108,000 Wisconsin seniors enrolled in SeniorCare and 64,000 Wisconsinites enrolled in BadgerCare. Both programs have proven to be cost-effective and popular in the state. While there is a waiver pending with the administration to continue SeniorCare, the HHS budget assumes that the program will lose federal funding. The administration proposed many budget cuts to health care programs, but both SeniorCare and BadgerCare are more cost-effective than their alternatives. SeniorCare costs the federal government only $617 per participant compared to $1,174 per participant for the Medicare Part D program. During the hearing, Feingold also advocated for the continued coverage of Wisconsinites currently covered by the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The Administration’s budget proposal for SCHIP could end up hurting expectant mothers and parents of children enrolled in Medicaid and BadgerCare. “SCHIP funds are critical to the thousands of Wisconsinites enrolled in BadgerCare, Wisconsin’s program to provide health care coverage for uninsured families,” Feingold said. “Eliminating coverage would hurt tens of thousands of expectant mothers and parents of children enrolled in Medicaid and SCHIP.” A complete transcript of Feingold’s questioning of Leavitt is below. Transcript of Senate Budget Committee Hearing on the FY08 Budget Proposals for the Department of Health and Human Services February 13, 2007 Sen. Russ Feingold: I’m glad I’m here and I’m glad we’re focusing on the health and human services budget. Some of the cuts in the budget will directly affect my home state of Wisconsin. There are two health care programs very important in my state. SeniorCare which is the prescription assistance program for Wisconsin seniors and Badgercare which is Wisconsin’s children’s health insurance program, the President’s budget appears to cut this as well. I hope this is not the case. There are 108,000 Wisconsin seniors enrolled in SeniorCare and 64,000 Wisconsites enrolled in Badgercare. These programs, I can tell you because I go to every county ever year and hold a town meeting, they’re effective, popular and cheaper than private coverage and other alternatives, so I don’t think it makes sense to pull support for these programs and to follow on that as I mentioned 108,000 Seniors in Wisconsin are enrolled in the state’s prescription assistance program known as SeniorCare Governor Doyle of Wisconsin has a waiver application pending with HHS approval of this waiver would allow the program to continue but that state still has not received a final answer and the current waiver is set to expire in less than six months. Secretary, are you familiar with Wisconsin’s SeniorCare and this waiver? Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt: Yes I am Senator. Senator Feingold: Your budget request appears to assume that the SeniorCare Program -Wisconsin Pharmacy Plus Demonstration will lose its federal funding after FY 2007. Is this the case and does that signal that HHS will be rejecting the waiver application? Secretary Leavitt: That matter is still be deliberated on I will telll you that I’m very familiar with this I’ve spent meant…I’ve had many conversations both in Wisconsin and with Governor Doyle. SeniorCare waiver was approved at a time when there was no prescription drug benefit. And the issue before HHS will be a question of whether or not…is not whether SeniorCare should be continued it’s whether or not federal money will continue to support it. We supported it before because there was no prescription drug benefit. The issue that will be before us now is should we continue to support it given that there are several hundred thousand members of Wisconsin public that are… Senator Feingold: Well I want to check my facts on that but I believe one waiver was granted after the program was enacted so that…I believe that’s the case… Secretary Leavitt: We put a waiver into place to help coordinate the integration of Part D and SeniorCare and we’ve been…and we’ve been working very closely with Governor Doyle to make certain the coordination was effective. The issue of whether or not the federal government continues to support both plans is a matter that’s being deliberated on right now. But we’ve been very clear with Sen…with Governor Doyle we wanted to make Part D work and he’s been very cooperative to make certain that it did. Senator Feingold: I appreciate the attention that’s being paid to it, it’s very important to our state. I take it from your briefings you’re aware that SeniorCare costs the federal government less than $617 per participant than what the federal government spends per participant on Medicare Part D which is $1,174. This program costs the taxpayers less money and I think it’s more popular than Medicare Part D, I can tell you that from my knowledge of Wisconsin. It’s what the state of Wisconsin wants, it is budget neutral due to savings generated [from] Medicaid and it is the primary source of prescription coverage for over 100,000 seniors in my state. I just want to make it clear that if this waiver extension is denied it will in effect cost this federal government more money while simultaneously dropping seniors from their preferred drug coverage. I think that’s a lose-lose situation, to use your excellent phrase, more like an amputation than weight-loss, and I think it could be easily remedied if you approve this waiver. So I hope you will seriously consider that. The budget discourages coverage of childless adults under that state’s children’s health insurance program SCHIP. I’m concerned this will lead to a policy of not covering any adults with program funds. My state of Wisconsin covers parents of Medicaid and SCHIP children in addition to pregnant women and there’s good evidence that family-based coverage is better for children and families [when] there’s no other insurance for these adults. Does the president support states being able to cover these adult populations under SCHIP, will the president support states like Wisconsin continuing coverage adults with SCHIP funds? Secretary Leavitt: We do support the continuation of adults who are currently on the program and we will not be supportive of extending coverage to adult…new adult populations. We believe that CHIP should be focused on its original intent which is to help lower income children, and that we’re enthusiastic about its reauthorization but we do have the feelings I’ve expressed. Senator Feingold: Secretary, thank you for your testimony and your attention to these matters.

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