Why, a senior citizen wanted to know at a Wednesday seminar on Medicare, is the new prescription drug card plan so complicated?

&uot;Because it’s the government,&uot; was the reply from Debra Dear, a Medicare representative who spoke to a packed house at the Natchez Senior Citizen Center.

Dear was asked by center staff &045;&045; who have themselves been fielding questions about the new drug cards &045;&045; to explain the program and how it works.

&uot;The intent (of the Medicare changes) is to give seniors better access to healthcare and prescription drug coverage,&uot; Dear said.

The biggest change seniors must make a decision about right now is the new drug discount card, a massive and complicated program that will have a short lifespan.

The drug discount card, being offered by a variety of private &uot;sponsor&uot; organizations and companies across the country, provides a 10 to 25 percent discount on prescription drugs to those eligible to sign up.

The program is voluntary, but seniors must be receiving Medicare Part A and/or Medicare Part B to be eligible.

Further, low-income seniors can qualify for a $600 annual benefit that also waives the enrollment fee for the card. The federal government limits the enrollment fee &045;&045; which is set by individual card providers &045;&045; to a $30 annual threshold.

Questions from the audience Wednesday were few, but many emphasized how confusing the plan can be. Instead of one card or one plan, there are a number of plans and cards and sponsors out there.

Details of the plan are available on the Medicare Web site at www.medicare.gov. But when Dear asked how many people had access to a computer, few raised their hands.

Medicare recipients can call a 24-hour a day, seven-day Medicare hotline at 1-800-Medicare to get a detailed, personalized outline of the best plans available to them.

Dear encouraged seniors to have a list of their medications and dosages with them when calling the toll-free number, because that will help the operators determine the best plan.

Dear recommends that seniors call after 6 p.m. on Thursday or Friday or on Sundays &045;&045; that’s when call volume is lowest.

Jerry Brown of Natchez has called that number and received a detailed list of options available to him. He said his wait time was only a few minutes, and the total call took him about 20 minutes.

&uot;The main thing is having your information&uot; ready when you call, Brown said.

In about three weeks, Brown had received his personalized plan analysis.

Brown, though, won’t see much relief from the drug discount. His medications monthly already exceed his income &045;&045; and they exceed the $600 annual benefit.

Dear admitted that finding the best drug card is complicated.

&uot;This is not going to be an easy process,&uot; she told Wednesday’s audience. &uot;You’re going to have to do some research. You’re going to have to do some shopping on the Internet.&uot;

The Medicare program will change Jan. 1, 2006, when the drug benefit begins. At that time the discount cards will be invalid, and a new system to provide a drug benefit will be in place.

Medicare changes have been complicated in Mississippi by the state’s decision to release 65,000 Medicaid recipients starting July 1. All states will have to release people who qualify for both benefits by January 2006, when the new Medicare drug benefit program begins.

The Natchez Senior Citizen Center will host another meeting to explain Medicaid changes at 10 a.m. Tuesday.

To learn more about Medicare changes, residents can also call the Area Agency on Aging at 446-6044.