Washington, D.C. - Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I was pleased to support H.R. 2631 which guarantees that the legislation designed to provide Medicare recipients with some prescription drug coverage would not lead to the creation of an inferior prescription-drug benefit for retired federal employees.
The Republican version of the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill, which passed the House on June 27, 2003 is a bad piece of legislation for many reasons. One of its many serious flaws is that it could result in a reduction of coverage for federal employees. Because of how the bill was written, the Congressional Budget Office has estimated that as many as 1/3 of all retirees who currently have prescription drug coverage through their employer's private plan will lose their coverage to the generally inferior set of benefits outlined in the House proposal. We cannot allow our retired federal workers to fall victim to capricious business practices geared toward increasing profits above all else. Federal employees who have dedicated many years of their lives to public service deserve to live out their retirement with dignity and security. H.R. 2631 will help achieve this.
The legislation proposes nothing radical in seeking to ensure that the prescription drug package enjoyed by current federal employees will be available to federal retirees as well. Currently there is parity between the two benefits packages. And, this non-partisan effort is dedicated to guaranteeing that this remains true.
Given the difficulties involved in retaining federal employees, we should all recognize that supporting this legislation will help communicate to new and current employees that their efforts and sacrifices are appreciated and will be honored even after they have completed their public service.
The rate of growth of premiums in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program (FEHBP), in comparison to the disproportionately slow growth in the cost of living adjustment (COLA), is a major concern for federal retirees. Since 1998, FEHBP premiums have increased more than 10% per year. Last year alone, FEHBP premiums increased 11%. During the same period, the federal retirement annuity COLA was only 1.4%. It is difficult enough to keep pace with these changes without the added pressure of having to deal with the possibility that the level of choice and service they have grown accustomed to during their employment will suffer in their retirement.
It is important that we do all that we can to help our federal retirees deal with the burden of financial shocks. Therefore I thank those of my colleagues who joined me in supporting H.R. 2631 and I commend Mr. DAVIS of Virginia for introducing the bill.