Health Care

New York Times - Bipartisan Senate Group Seeks to Lift Late Fee on Medicare Drug Plan

A powerful bipartisan group of senators announced on Tuesday that they would push legislation to eliminate the financial penalty for people who sign up late for Medicare's prescription drug benefit.

The announcement came just 13 hours after the deadline for enrollment.

Senator Charles E. Grassley, Republican of Iowa, chairman of the Finance Committee, and Senator Max Baucus of Montana, the senior Democrat on the panel, initiated the effort to waive the penalty, which amounts to a permanent increase of 7 percent on all future premiums — about $2.50 a month next year.