Florida Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Announces Three-Part Plan To Expand Residents’ Access to Prescription Drugs

Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill McBride on Oct. 16 outlined a "three-pronged approach" to provide residents with greater access to prescription drugs, the Orlando Sentinel reports. Under the plan, McBride would encourage federal legislators to add a prescription drug benefit to Medicare, expand drug coverage under Medicaid and use the state's bargaining power to obtain lower drug prices from pharmaceutical companies (Mahlburg/Silva, Orlando Sentinel, 10/17). Specifically, McBride said he would create a program that would give residents with annual incomes up to 200% of the federal poverty level, or about $17,000 for an individual, a 30% discount on prescription drugs. About one million people would be eligible for the program, which would cost the state $10 million to $15 million annually and would require about $150 million in federal funding. McBride contrasted his proposal with Gov. Jeb Bush's (R) Silver Savers program, which provides up to $160 a month for about 58,000 seniors who have annual incomes less than $10,000. Under Silver Savers, participants pay $2 per prescription, the state contributes $29 million annually and the federal government pays about $80 million (Allison, St. Petersburg Times, 10/17). McBride's plan consists largely of ideas borrowed from other Democrats, the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel reports, including plans proposed by state Rep. Dan Gelber (D) and defeated gubernatorial candidate Janet Reno (D). Todd Harris, a spokesperson for Bush, said McBride's proposals are "devoid of specifics" and do not explain how the programs would be funded (Man, Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, 10/17).