Guinn’s drug plan for seniors suffers a setback

Friday, June 30, 2000 | 11:19 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- In a setback for Gov. Kenny Guinn, a task force refused Thursday to release more than $4.6 million for his program to subsidize senior citizens in the purchase of insurance policies to cover the rising cost of prescription drugs.

Assemblywoman Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, the co-chairwoman of the Task Force for the Fund for a Healthy Nevada, said the group should not free up any money until it sees details of the proposed coverage for seniors and the winning policy bid by an insurance company.

Drug prices are out of the reach of many seniors, Buckley said. "It is undisputed seniors need prescription drug coverage," he said, adding that it must be an "effective" policy.

Guinn sat in the audience two hours waiting to testify in Carson City but had to leave for a speaking engagement before the task force reached the topic on the agenda. After the meeting, Guinn's press secretary, Jack Finn, said the governor was "surprised and very disappointed" by the committee action.

"This is a setback but the governor ... is committed to the senior citizens of Nevada and political agendas be damned," said Finn, suggesting some task force members were playing politics.

His administration released a "Request for Proposals" Thursday to be sent to 800 insurance companies to submit bids to cover the elderly who earn less than $21,500 a year and are not eligible for Medicaid. The deadline for submitting the bids is Aug. 29. The suggested price range is $45-$60 for the basic policy, of which the state would pick up a maximum of $40, depending on a person's income.

Guinn's chief of staff, Scott Scherer, urged the task force to vote to reserve the money so insurance companies would know there are enough funds available to pay for the project.

This would remove the fears expressed by some insurance companies about the certainty of the money. And without the pledge, the plan "is doomed to failure," Scherer said.

Much like in Congress, the debate in the task force pitted Democrats against Republicans and whether the Guinn plan will be adequate to help seniors. Buckley, the assistant majority leader in the Assembly went against Sen. Ray Rawson, R-Las Vegas, the assistant majority leader in the Senate.

Rawson argued the task force doesn't have the authority to withhold the money. "We've stepped over the line," he said, adding that the task force is trying to manage the program, which is under the authority of the Guinn Administration. He suggested it would be malfeasance on the part of the committee not to reserve the money.

An effort by Rawson to push through a vote to release the money ended up with support only from Bill Welch and Dr. John Ellerton on the nine-member committee. The task force then accepted Buckley's plan that it would vote as soon as the policy is available, along with a winning bidder.

Buckley rejected Rawson's argument about malfeasance, saying it would not be responsible to commit the money until the task force has seen some details to determine if it's an effective plan. The task force, she said doesn't know the extent of the drug coverage, co-pay information, deductible, how much it will cost to enroll and the premiums.

Task force member Ed Fend, a representative of the American Association of Retired People, said the national average cost per month for prescriptions for seniors is $250. He said he wanted to make sure the policy covered drugs for diabetes, heart and arthritis, the three most common ailments of seniors.

"We need to have those areas covered," he said.

Scherer argued the issues raised by Buckley and Fend won't be answered until the insurance committees submit their bids. The companies, he said will be able to present different plans to the state. And this will spark competition, enabling the state to get a better policy.

The Legislature, at the suggestion of Guinn, agreed to spend 15 percent of the yearly tobacco settlement money on creating this program to subsidize those 62 years old and older who want to buy an insurance policy to cover prescriptions. The estimated money available for this fiscal year which ends today is $4.6 million and that goes to about $5 million the new fiscal year starting Saturday.

The program is patterned after the senior citizens property tax rebate in which some 11,000 people have signed up to recover a part of the taxes they pay.

"There likely will be limitations (in the drug policy) but it will be better than nothing for the thousands of seniors who don't have any coverage now," Scherer said.

The timetable is to award a bid in September, start enrolling in October and begin the coverage in January. It was originally scheduled to start in October but in the first go-around, only one company submitted a bid. And that firm wasn't licensed in Nevada.