Low-income Medicare beneficiaries around the country were often overcharged, and some were turned away from pharmacies without getting their medications, in the first week of Medicare’s new drug benefit. The problems have prompted emergency action by some states to protect their citizens.Although there are no hard numbers, concerns expressed by state officials and complaints from pharmacists suggest a widespread pattern of problems. At least four states - Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota and Vermont - acted this week to make sure poor people received the drugs they were promised but could not obtain through the federal Medicare program.
