Drug Benefit Draws Fire at Conference on Aging

“We want Medicare—not the private insurance companies—to negotiate drug prices,” agreed Marilyn Askin, a delegate from West Orange, N.J.

But Mary Watts, a delegate from Washington, questioned whether it is useful to even debate the issue. The delegates “are trying to fix something that was done 2 years ago,” she said, referring to the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003.

Frustration toward the drug benefit was fairly reflective of the meeting's general tone. At one point, several delegates disrupted meeting proceedings to issue a petition to reinstate the “10% rule,” which allows for discussion of resolutions not approved by the conference if 10% of the delegates agree on the merits of a proposed resolution.

Dorcas Hardy, chair of the conference's policy committee, said the delegates had ample time to review the resolutions before the meeting. As for the 10% rule, applicable to previous White House Conference on Aging meetings, “this is a different meeting,” she said, adding that the conference organizers had the right to choose a new format.

Some delegates thought that the time taken up by speeches from administration officials and industry representatives could have been used toward the implementation sessions.

In particular, the delegates didn't get a chance to engage in dialogue with Secretary Leavitt or Dr. McClellan, Ms. Camerieri said. “The conference didn't offer much involvement except voting on a preselected list of items. This seems to be the opposite of what the White House Conference is supposed to be about—respect for your elders.”

Others felt slighted that President Bush didn't make an appearance at this White House-sponsored event. Pedro Rodriguez, a delegate from Philadelphia, said, “We wanted to create a momentum, a platform for policy, but people were prevented from coming up with alternative strategies. We were not allowed to go outside of the box.”

To perhaps put some muscle behind these implementation plans, delegates drew up language insisting that the White House recognize the work that comes out of the conference.

In the meantime, the delegates agreed to follow through on their own grassroots efforts and convene meetings to disseminate the recommendations.