State will require PACE enrollees to join Medicare Part D program (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
In a shift from their earlier stance, state officials said yesterday that older Pennsylvanians enrolled in the state's PACE drug assistance program would be required to sign up for the Medicare drug program known as Part D.

Medicare Part D Helps Beneficiaries, Changes Are Needed Say Majority Of Health Care Opinion Leaders (Medical News Today)
Respondents agree with policies to reduce complexity, change benefit structure, improve low-income benefitNew York City, July 14, 2006 -- Two-thirds of respondents to the latest Commonwealth Fund Health Care Opinion Leaders Survey agree (strongly agree or agree) that enactment of Part D was on balance good for beneficiaries, but majorities also support basic changes to the law. [click link for

Medicare Part D has 'donut hole' that could trap thousands (Star-Gazette)
Tens of thousands of Upstate New York senior citizens could fall through the cracks of the new Medicare drug plan, according to U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer.

AHIP: Part D Beneficiaries Have Very Few Complaints About Program, CMS Reports (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
America's Health Insurance Plans President and CEO Karen Ignagni, made the following comments regarding the release of beneficiary complaint data by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services :