Under the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, the Founders guaranteed the Freedom of the Press to insure the Press would provide not only a "Free Marketplace of Ideas," but also a forum in which National Problems could be discussed. In this way the People would have early warning of these problems and could take remedial action. Today, the American People are being denied this kind of information by a Corrupt Media. Today, we have a major National Problem that has been growing like a cancer over the last ten years -- a very expensive and highly dysfunctional national health care system.

This National Problem affects all Americans, but the weight of the corporatized health care systems falls disproportionately on the shoulders of millions of older Americans. These are the Americans who lived through the Depression, who worked or fought in the Second World War, the Korean War, and Vietnamese War, and who constructed the foundations of our present prosperity.

While the problems of health care in old age and the cost of prescription drugs fall most heavily on our Senior Citizens, ALL Americans of all ages are being victimized by our present dysfunctional health care system. Contrary to what some believe, the American Health Care System is supposed to provide good medical care for all of our people as cheaply and as efficiently as possible. It is not to make U.S. and foreign-owned pharmaceutical corporations rich beyond their wildest dreams. It is not to make certain entrepreneurs who created the HMOs into instant multi-millionaires, and in some cases, into instant billionaires. It is not to have a dysfunctional health care delivery system in which 42.6 million Americans, 15 percent of our population, is uninsured. It is to provide good health care and fair health care for the American People.

Any U.S. national, regional or local newspaper could determine the current retail cost of dozens of prescription drugs in a very short time simply by sending its reporters to the drug stores in the local area. These local drug stores, with a little work, could also provide the prices drug consumers have to pay when they are covered by prescription drug insurance from an HMO or a health insurance company. Just as easily the newspapers could send reporters just across the Canadian or Mexican borders to determine the exact price of exactly the same prescription drugs in exactly the same dosage levels.

This information is there and is easily available for collection, analysis and reporting by the Media. Yet this has never been done over the past ten years. The Mainstream Media avoids this kind of information as if it were some kind of a dangerous infectious disease. Knowledge of this kind is dangerous to the "financial arrangements" of the powerful and the privileged in this country. Imagine what would happen if the American people were fully informed of the actual price differentials between the retail price millions of Americans pay, the prices they pay through HMOs and insurance companies, and the retail charges for exactly the same prescription drugs just across our borders and in Europe. They would not only demand change, they would get it. Hence the need for the Mainstream Media to CENSOR this kind of information so as to keep it from the American people, and to continue protecting the $1 trillion dollar Health Care Industry and the Republican Party.

In the 18 years from 1981 to 1999, prescription drug costs within the borders of our country has increased at three times the rate of the Consumer Price Index. This is a condition unique to this country alone. For just across the Canadian border exactly the same drugs we use cost one-half, one-third, or one-fifth the retail cost of those same drugs in the United States. Just as bad, a drug sold at a retail cost of over $25 in the Second Congressional District of Texas can be obtained by HMOs and other "favored customers" for less than two dollars -- $1.87. This is for exactly the same dosage amount of exactly the same drug. So all Americans are paying for the most expensive prescription drugs in the World. This information has been known to the Mainstream Media for years and yet it has not be reported.

These stories are never printed because they have been CENSORED out of our daily newspapers.

But the Prescription Drug problem for Medicare recipients is a particularly troubling problem for the richest country in the World. Many Medicare recipients are living totally off of their Social Security benefits, still others are able to supplement those benefits with the savings built up from over thirty to forty years of working. Today there are approximately 39-40 million Medicare recipients in the United States, roughly 15 percent of the American population. The percentage of Americans on Medicare will grow quickly over the next twenty years as the baby boom generation begins retiring.

About 15 million of the current Medicare recipients lack the money to buy prescription drug insurance from private insurance companies. Two case studies from a July 1st, 2000 survey by the Medicare Rights Center of New York make for very grim reading:

"Mr. K, a resident of Great Neck, N.Y., was recently laid off from his job and enrolled inOriginal Medicare. He has had only one kidney since 1992 because of cancer of the kidney. Mr. K’s doctors have urged him to take medication to prevent kidney stones, which he has had in the past. However, he can afford neither the medication nor the cost of a Medigap which would include drug coverage. As a result, Mr. K either goes without his medication or occasionally buys half a month’s supply. The recommended medications,taken on a regular basis, would cost $5,540 a year."

"Mr. C is 52 years old and disabled. He was diagnosed with arthritis in 1982 and recently developed a heart condition, which increased his dependence on prescription drugs. Mr. C receives $1,250 a month from Social Security, but his drug expenses have grown to $300—$400 a month. With mortgage and utility bills, Mr. C has been forced to cut back on all other expenses–travel, clothing and even food. Mr. C has a 16-year-old daughter and the impact of this financial stress has been extremely hard on his family. However, Mr. C lives in Camden, N.Y., within an hour of the Canadian border. He recently arranged to obtain his drugs in Canada, where he will save 60%—80%."

These uninsured Seniors or Disabled Persons on Medicare are the ones who are currently going without meals to pay for prescriptions. They are the ones who are cutting prescription drug pills in half because it is one of the things they can do to extend their medicines. They are the ones traveling to Canada and Mexico to get their prescription drugs at one-half, one-third, or one-fifth the cost of these drugs in the United States. They are Americans and they deserve better from this country.

The American People do not know of this National Problem because the Mainstream Media has SYSTEMATICALLY AND DELIBERATELY CENSORED this kind of news from the nation's newspapers. Where are the news stories showing the differences in the costs of prescription drugs comparing prescription drug prices in the other major industrialized countries of the World with those in the United States? For every dollar an American spends on prescription drugs, a German pays 71 cents, a Swede pays 68 cents, a Briton pays 65 cents, a Canadian pays 64 cents, and an Italian pays 51 cents. And much of this is usually for the same drugs which are manufactured in the United States.

Where are the news stories comparing the retail costs of drugs to our 15 million uninsured Seniors with the costs of those same drugs to the HMOs and the other "favored customers" of the pharmaceutical industry?

These stories are never printed because they have been CENSORED out of our daily newspapers.

The National Problem of prescription drug costs now extends beyond the 15 million Senior Citizens without prescription drug insurance. There are approximately 39 to 40 million people on Medicare. Of these, 24 million have been able to obtain HMO Medicare insurance, Medigap insurance or some form of health insurance providing some level of prescription drug insurance. This is now changing because it is no longer profitable for the HMOs and insurance companies.

On September 2, 2000, Phil Galewitz of the Associated Press published a revised and expanded story orginally written on August 30th. It was on the fears of U.S. Senior Citizens who were losing their Medicare HMO coverage. It seems that Wall Street is not happy with the rate of return from the HMOs providing this kind of coverage -- coverage that provided for the payment of prescription drug costs. The cut back is occurring because the Medicare HMOs say that Medicare is not paying them enough for prescription drug coverage.

700,000 PLUS 934,000 EQUALS 1,634,000

Beginning in 1998, the Medicare HMOs have dropped more than 700,000 Seniors from their rolls because of their claimed "lack of profitability" over prescription drugs. By 2001, the Medicare HMOs will drop 934,000 more Seniors from their rolls. According to Galewitz, "About half the seniors losing their Medicare HMO option next year live in Florida, Texas, Pennsylvania and Virginia -- all states with large populations age 65 and older."

As Galewitz points out, some states are trying to help out. "Responding to the HMO cutbacks," he writes, "several states such as New York, Indiana and Kansas have created or expanded programs to help the elderly afford prescription drugs. But the efforts are mostly aimed at low-income seniors, or offer only a nominal assistance." As a result middle-income Seniors are left out.

For his article, Galewitz then interviewed two of these middle-income seniors from Florida, Edward and Evelyn Thomas.

". . . . I AM TERRIFIED . . . ."

" 'I am terrified,' said Evelyn Thomas, 74, of St. Augustine, Fla., who is pondering not taking some of the nine drugs she uses for diabetes, high blood pressure, depression and other maladies. 'I cannot afford to pay for my medicines on my own, and I can't afford to pay for a

Medicare supplement that would cover my medicines.' "

"Thomas is one of nearly 159,000 elderly people nationwide who are now enrolled in a Medicare HMO and whose health plans are ending coverage as of Jan. 1 — leaving them with no option other than returning to traditional Medicare coverage without prescription benefits, or buying expensive supplemental insurance."

Now some apologists for the Mainstream Media will point to the Galewitz story and say: "Well, we did report it." Yes. Finally. The story of the 15 million American seniors without prescription drug insurance is over ten years old and has been allowed to fester because it has been ignored by the Mainstream Media. The information has been there, it simply has not been reported. We learn from the Congressional Record that in the Second Congressional District of Texas, the average retail price of Ticlid, a stroke medication is $117.95. The "most favored" customers of the pharmaceutical companies, like the HMOs, the hospital chains and the Federal Government (Veterans Administration, Medicaid, and other Federal health programs) pay $33.57 for Ticlid, three and one half times less.

Synthorid, a hormone treatment, had a much greater price difference. The "most favored" customers are paying $1.78 for the prescription, while the uninsured senior citizens in the Second Congressional District are paying the retail price of $25.86, fourteen and one-half times as much. The information is there, it simply has not been reported.

Why? If the uninsured had been able to get prescription drugs at the "most favored" customer price, there would have been no need for Medicare recipients to pay premiums to the Medicare HMOs, the Medigap insurers, and the other insurance companies offering prescription drug insurance. The pharmaceutical companies, the HMOs, and the hospitals are all large advertisers in the media -- newspapers, radio, and television. The Mainstream Media has sold out the American People for advertising dollars. The information is available, but it is not reported.

And how dependable are those Medicare HMO's? Here are some of missing specifics from the Galewitz story. Consider the following case studies from the New York Medicare Rights Center survey of July 2000.

"Ms. L is 63 years old and lives in upstate Queensbury, N.Y. She has been disabled for four years due to severe back pain and arthritis. She also suffers from asthma, high blood pressure and depression and, as a result, takes a large number of prescription drugs. If purchased, her medications would cost approximately $800 a month. However, Ms. L depends upon doctor-provided samples or substitutes over-the-counter alternatives. Ms. L twice joined an HMO to save costs. The first left her county, and the second, which provided no prescription drug coverage, has announced that it too will leave. Although she has considered looking for another HMO with drug benefits, Ms. L realizes that the benefits would be very limited."

"Mrs. P suffers from diabetes, high cholesterol, anemia and a thyroid condition. She has also had congestive heart failure and relies on approximately 10 prescription drugs a day. She and her husband are both retired, but have no retiree health coverage and cannot afford a Medigap plan. Mr. and Mrs. P joined a Medicare HMO, but the nearly $100 a month premium and $500 yearly cap on prescription drugs did not meet their needs. The couple learned that their HMO was available in another county– Queens, N.Y.– with no monthly premium and a $1,000 yearly cap on drugs. Mr. and Mrs. P relocated solely to take advantage of these more favorable terms. However, even with this better coverage, they cannot afford all of Mrs. P’s medication, which costs approximately $700 a month. She is currently getting samples from her doctor to supplement those they can afford.

Why doesn't the Mainstream Media publish these kinds of stories? Well the HMOs are good advertisers and a good source of income. On the other hand, Ms. L and Mr. and Mrs. P are simply its readers and are the "little people" the Mainstream Media no longer serves, just as it no longer serves the American People.

Per capita Medical Care costs in the United States are the highest in the World. Prescription drugs in the United States are the most expensive in the World. Health insurance costs are the highest in the World. Why don't the American people know these things?

What newspaper has published a list of the prescription drugs most used by the American People together with their retail costs, their costs to the drug industries "Most Favored Customers," and their costs in the other major industrialized countries of the world? NONE.

What newspaper has considered the cost of Medical Care in the United States and then compared to similar costs in the other major industrialized countries of the World? NONE.

What newspaper has compared the medical care systems of foreign countries with that of the United States and tallied up the pluses and minuses? NONE.

What newspaper had provided the stories of our Senior Citizens on Medicare who do not have prescription drug insurance and its impact on their lives? NONE.

The real "kicker" in all of this is in the final paragraphs of the Phil Galewitz article which he concludes with the story of Edward and Evelyn Thomas of St. Augustine, Florida.

Mrs. Thomas, 74, as we have already seen, takes nine prescription drugs for diabetes, high blood pressure, depression and other illnesses. Mr. Thomas, 75, has heart disease.

As Galewitz writes, " Edward and Evelyn Thomas' situation is typical of thousands of middle-class seniors. They thought they were secure in 1981 when they retired from New Jersey to a house near a golf course in St. Augustine, Fla."

"In the past few years, they've been living off their modest savings and about $1,200 in combined Social Security checks each month. The couple was happy to have an HMO with good doctors and drug benefits. But in 1998, Prudential Health pulled out of their county and they joined Humana. Now, Humana plans to exit the market next year."

"The prospects of going back to traditional Medicare are scary -- but it's all they can afford.' I take the least amount of medication possible,' said Edward Thomas, 75, who had open heart surgery in 1990. The Thomases have thought about selling their home and moving to another county that still has a Medicare HMO."

[the final paragraph} ``We have no real options except to drop some of our pills,'' Evelyn Thomas said. ``Our only option is to complain to our congressman, but neither party seems to care.''

Neither political party "seems to care" because since 1995, the Mainstream Media has CENSORED the news on the Democratic activities in the House and the Senate trying to reduce prescription drug prices for all Americans.