Final answer:
Yes, Medicare provides different levels of prescription help, evidenced by the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003, which includes a prescription drug discount card program saving recipients up to 25% and an expansion that helped reduce drug costs for the elderly.
Step-by-step explanation:
True, there are different levels of prescription help from Medicare. After recognizing that Medicare lacked a prescription drug benefit which significantly impacted the elderly and disabled, Congress passed the Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization Act of 2003. This legislation introduced two types of assistance programs. One was a prescription drug discount card program, which was estimated to save Social Security recipients about 15 percent to 25 percent annually on their prescription drugs.
Additionally, in 2003, a substantial expansion of Medicare was made law, which enabled the elderly to save on costs for prescription drugs. Despite its benefits, the program faced criticism for its high costs, heavy overhead, and inflationary effects. By 2006, the cost to the federal government for providing this benefit was around $40 billion, and it was projected to potentially rise to $121 billion by 2016.
The push for the prescription drug benefit was strong, partly because of advocacy from the American Association for Retired People (AARP), which represents senior citizens. Conversely, there was less political pressure to help the 40 million Americans without health insurance as there wasn't a comparable organization lobbying for their interests.