From: "John"
Subject: important

This is URGENT everyone please act. This effects the elderly as well
as the disabled. It could be disastrous.
Cathy

Action Alert information below is from the HIV Medicaid-Medicare
Workgroup of the Federal AIDS Policy Partnership (of which Florida
AIDS Action is a very active participant). This information on
Medicaid has been confirmed by congressional sources as well. As is
stated below, Florida could be at high risk. Please take the actions
outlined below. Feel free to forward this to as many interested
parties as you can.

Thanks, Gene Copello, Florida AIDS Action
_____________________________________________________________________
____
From the HIV Medicaid-Medicare Workgroup:

STOP THE SNEAK ATTACK ON MEDICAID!



(October 28) In Washington, House and Senate conferees currently
wrapping up work on the Medicare drug benefit legislation are
considering a sneak attack on Medicaid -- and it could have a huge
impact on Americans living with HIV/AIDS and other disabilities as
well as low-income seniors. The provisions could impact over six
million low-income elderly and disabled people across the nation,
including thousands of people living with HIV/AIDS.



Basically, it looks like the negotiators are trying to pay for the
drug benefit for the middle-class and well-off elderly by sticking
it to poor disabled and elderly folks. Two significant Medicaid
rule changes are under consideration that would:



a.. Require states to count certain income and assets that many of
them now disregard for purposes of determining Medicaid
eligibility. The proposal would prohibit states from disregarding
any more income or assets than the federal government does for the
very restrictive SSI cash assistance program. For example, while
the SSI asset limit for eligibility is currently $2000 for a couple,
many states set their Medicaid asset limit at a higher level to
include more low-income people.

This proposed change would probably result in low-income elders and
people with disabilities losing Medicaid coverage in over twenty
states, including: Alabama, California, Connecticut, Delaware,
Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine,
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New
Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Utah, Vermont, and Washington.



a.. Prohibit state Medicaid programs from taking into account the
large out-of-pocket costs that low-income elderly and disabled
Medicare beneficiaries will face in any Medicare drug benefit now
being considered. Currently, people are responsible for paying some
of these expenses in order to qualify for Medicaid, and any
remaining costs during the month are then paid by Medicaid.

The new proposal is inconsistent with the principle of state
flexibility that is currently built into the Medicaid Act. It
would, for the first time, prevent Medicaid from acting as the
insurer of last resort for these individuals who are so poor that
they would, without this provision, qualify for both Medicare and
Medicaid. In the absence of such coverage, it is difficult to
imagine just how low-income Medicare recipients will be able to meet
both those expenses and their other basic necessities of daily
living.



ZAP OF THE WEEK: It's time to contact members of the Conference
Committee and urge them not to balance the Medicare prescription
drug budget on the backs of low-income and disabled Medicare
beneficiaries by cutting off their current access to the Medicaid
program.

The members of the Conference Committee are listed below. Those who
are actively involved in shaping the emerging legislation are marked
with an asterisk. According to the New York Times, the others have
been largely shut out of the deliberations.



HOUSE


* Bill Thomas (R-CA; Ways and Means Committee Chairman), 202-225-2915
* Billy Tauzin (R-LA, Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman), 202-
225-4031
* Mike Bilirakis (R-FL, Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee
Chairman), 202-225-5755
* Tom DeLay (R-TX, House Majority Leader), 202-225-5951
* Nancy Johnson (R-CT, Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health Chair),
202-225-4476



John Dingell (D-MI, Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member),
202-225-4071
Charles Rangel (D-NY, Ways and Means Ranking Member), 202-225-4365
Marion Berry (D-AK), 202-225-4076

SENATE



* Bill Frist (R-TN, Senate Majority Leader), 202-224-3344
* Charles Grassley (R-IA, Finance Committee Chairman), 202-224-3744
* Orrin Hatch (R-UT, Judiciary Committee Chairman), 202-224-5251
* Don Nickles (R-OK, Budget Committee Chair), 202-224-5754
* Jon Kyl (R-AZ), 202-224-4521
Tom Daschle (D-SD, Senate Minority Leader), 202-224-2321
* Max Baucus (D-MT, Finance Committee Ranking Member), 202-224-2651

* John Breaux (D-LA), 202-224-4623
Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), 202-224-6472



Thanks for your immediate action on this important issue.

Michael Kink, Esq.
Legislative Counsel

Housing Works
Albany Advocacy Center
247 Lark Street 1st Floor
Albany, NY 12210
tel 518-449-4207 fax 518-449-4219
kink@...
www.housingworks.org


Cathy Robinson Pickett
863-686-7475 office
863-683-2875 fax
www.FriendsTogether.org