Medicare Drug Plan
They interviewed a woman on ABC news last night who "still hadn't signed up" because it was too difficult. Then they talked about how pharmacists aren't allowed to recommend any plan specifically and why. (That way they can't recommend the plan that will earn them the most $$. Makes sense to me.)
Then they showed the call centers that are allowed to help and all the people staffing them.
And finally they showed the website that they then noted most seniors won't use because they are not internet savvy. (Yet they gave no indication that this is a long term project and those of us who DO use the internet regularly will one day be old with any luck.)
They neatly wrapped up the story by going back to the woman who still hadn't signed up because it was too difficult.
And yet they never said why. She was a smart woman in her early 70s. What happened when she called the 1800 number? Did they not help? I don't know. She didn't say. Did she try the website? I don't know, she didn't say. She never said why it was too tricky.
Perhaps there are too many choices - that must be it. So lets remove all the choices and tell people that to get the coverage they have to buy from Kaiser. That'll be a good move. And we'll all just agree to that plan. And Blue Cross won't have a problem with that either I'm sure. Seriously, what did this woman want? Someone to tell her which company to use. Well, no matter what company she uses, she'll probably be saving money, so sign up for one that actually sells the prescriptions she uses. If she researched further she may save another $10/month, but frankly, I'd probably save money if I were willing to shop for auto insurance every month. Instead, I just stick with my guy and leave it at that. Am I not right??
Here's one editorial on it that seems to agree on the bottom line anyway.
UPDATE: Just to clarify $10/month adds up and not everyone can afford to not shop for the best deal. But a lot of people can and do. Also, the website isn't pretty. It has none of the style of a number of better websites out there. It all looks confusing. I'm just saying, so what? Take a deep breath, work it through and sign up! Or not. Its up to you!
Then they showed the call centers that are allowed to help and all the people staffing them.
And finally they showed the website that they then noted most seniors won't use because they are not internet savvy. (Yet they gave no indication that this is a long term project and those of us who DO use the internet regularly will one day be old with any luck.)
They neatly wrapped up the story by going back to the woman who still hadn't signed up because it was too difficult.
And yet they never said why. She was a smart woman in her early 70s. What happened when she called the 1800 number? Did they not help? I don't know. She didn't say. Did she try the website? I don't know, she didn't say. She never said why it was too tricky.
Perhaps there are too many choices - that must be it. So lets remove all the choices and tell people that to get the coverage they have to buy from Kaiser. That'll be a good move. And we'll all just agree to that plan. And Blue Cross won't have a problem with that either I'm sure. Seriously, what did this woman want? Someone to tell her which company to use. Well, no matter what company she uses, she'll probably be saving money, so sign up for one that actually sells the prescriptions she uses. If she researched further she may save another $10/month, but frankly, I'd probably save money if I were willing to shop for auto insurance every month. Instead, I just stick with my guy and leave it at that. Am I not right??
Here's one editorial on it that seems to agree on the bottom line anyway.
UPDATE: Just to clarify $10/month adds up and not everyone can afford to not shop for the best deal. But a lot of people can and do. Also, the website isn't pretty. It has none of the style of a number of better websites out there. It all looks confusing. I'm just saying, so what? Take a deep breath, work it through and sign up! Or not. Its up to you!
posted by Terri at
5:59 AM
