California Medicare Recipients v Medicare
California Medicare System Targeted in Class Action
A class-action lawsuit recently filed in federal court Wednesday alleges that Medicare has failed to properly enroll millions of low-income seniors and disabled beneficiaries into its new prescription drug plan.
The suit, filed in Oakland on behalf of three women and two senior-advocacy groups, also alleges that some low-income beneficiaries eligible for a subsidy were not properly notified about it or not receiving it. "As a result of the problems, many seniors and others who qualify for the program are going without critical medication", said lead attorney.
More than 6 million low-income senior and disabled beneficiaries, who had received drug coverage under Medicaid, the government health program for the poor, were required to be automatically enrolled into Medicare Part D plans Jan. 1. But that transfer was plagued by errors because databases to verify eligibility weren't ready or contained conflicting information.
The lawsuit seeks a federal judge to issue a permanent injunction forcing Medicare to resolve the enrollment problems, inform drug plans that low-income beneficiaries are eligible for subsidies, and "take any and all other steps to ensure that plaintiffs and class members receive the full benefits of the Part D program."
The lawsuit is open to any person receiving Medicare in the state of California.
