Summary
Because Viagra is sometimes used to treat enlarged hearts, federal officials have decided it should be covered under the Medicare prescription drug plan set to begin next year. But some conservative groups are upset. They note, of course, that Viagra is most commonly used to treat erectile dysfunction, and they are outraged that tax payers will financing what, at least one of their leaders calls "the romance of 76 million baby boomers."
Original source:
http://www.freep.com/news/nw/drugs2e_20050202.htm
Details
Sexual performance drugs such as Viagra will be covered in Medicare's new prescription drug program, a benefit that some conservatives and watchdog groups say the government shouldn't provide.
The voluntary prescription coverage, which President George W. Bush signed into law two years ago, begins next year on Jan. 1.
It's expected to cover the drug expenses of 11 million low-income older and disabled people and cost more than $500 billion over the next decade.
"The law says if it's an FDA-approved drug and it is medically necessary, it has to be covered," said Gary Karr, spokesman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which administers the health insurance program for older Americans.
Under the program, prescriptions for Viagra and similar drugs in its class will be controlled, like those for maladies such as high blood pressure and heart disease.
Pfizer's Viagra, Bayer's Levitra and Eli Lilly & Co.'s Cialis are used primarily to treat erectile dysfunction, but they also help treat enlarged hearts that can result from high blood pressure.
"Asking Uncle Sam to pay for the romance of 76 million baby boomers will quicken the impending collapse of Medicare," said Tom Schatz, president of a taxpayer watchdog group, Citizens Against Government Waste.
Karr said no analysis has been done on the cost of covering sexual performance drugs.
Others say the law puts Congress, and not doctors, in the position of deciding which drugs should be covered -- precisely the kind of big-government role that Republicans and Bush campaigned against.
"You cannot have a universal entitlement like this without extreme micromanagement," said Robert Moffit, a health care analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation.
Indeed, on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, talk turned to what types of drugs are covered by the new law.
About the author: Mike Adams is a consumer health advocate and award-winning journalist with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He has authored and published thousands of articles, interviews, consumers guides, and books on topics like health and the environment, and he has authored and published several downloadable personal preparedness courses including a downloadable course focused on safety and self defense. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2010, Adams co-founded NaturalNews.com, a natural health video sharing site that has now grown in popularity. He also founded an environmentally-friendly online retailer called BetterLifeGoods.com that uses retail profits to help support consumer advocacy programs. He's also the founder and CEO of a well known email mail merge software developer whose software, 'Email Marketing Director,' currently runs the NaturalNews email subscriptions. Adams volunteers his time to serve as the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and regularly pursues cycling, nature photography, Capoeira and Pilates. He's also author of numerous health books published by Truth Publishing and is the creator of several consumer-oriented grassroots campaigns, including the Spam. Don't Buy It! campaign, and the free downloadable Honest Food Guide. He also created the free reference sites HerbReference.com and HealingFoodReference.com. Adams believes in free speech, free access to nutritional supplements and the ending of corporate control over medicines, genes and seeds.
Have comments on this article? Post them here:
people have commented on this article.
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Email this article to a friend
Share
this article on: 
Now Available from 
