Letter: It is time

Published 12:15 am Saturday, October 5, 2024

I just received a notice from my Part D Medicare drug plan provider outlining the changes in my plan for 2025. I found out that my premium will increase by 988%, and the deductible by 190%. A few pages later, I discovered the reason for this piece of bad news.

You may have heard that the government has recently set a limit of $2,000 for seniors to pay out-of-pocket for prescription drugs. The government can do this with the stroke of the pen. And, with the stroke of a pen, the insurance companies can raise their rates 1,000% — how do you like us now?

While this is by far the worst in my 17 years on Medicare, older Americans run this gauntlet every fall. Our plans change yearly, or just evaporate when companies pull their coverage for any reason or no reason at all. “Just go find another plan,” we’re told.

“Big Pharma” spends way more on lobbying Congress than any other industry, and insurance comes in third — between them over half a billion dollars a year. Those two giants have dictated the legislation and designed this system to squeeze every last dollar of profit out of us because Congress allows it.

Americans spend more and get worse care than any other prosperous country. If you doubt me, do the research yourself. It is time to stop tweaking a broken system, and to demand that we finally take health care out of the profit-making sphere.

JOSEPH STEVENSON

Astoria