Show The Herald Journal Logan Utah Sunday November 16 2003 — A7 D Nation I I Medicair© flflimog Ibeiraeffoft WASHINGTON AP)- months of negotiations over nies and i1( )s" added Sen- the dmg benefit and a broad ate Minority leader Tom Republican congressional leaders said they scaled a tentative Daschle reworking of the Medicare The prescription drug hill agreement Saturday on a new program to give private insurers a new large role in health has been a top domestic priori- prescription drug benefit for ' the nation's seniors which care for 40 million older and ty for President Bush who'ear-lic- r ' would be the largest expansion disabled Americans Saturday used his radio in Medicare’s history ' It must win approval of address to make another appeal ' for bill “We have come to an agree- House and Senate negotiators a -ment on principles" Senate many of whom have been 'Congress has iin historic' Majority Rill F:rist said meeting for months in search opportunity to give all our ' Talks that lasted most of the of a compromise The legislaseniors prescription drug cov- tion would then go to the full day smoothed over the last erage health care choices and a healthier more seirure retire- remaining wrinkles in the hill-- ' v House and Senate w here ' await from the president said ment" including a proposal to have tough questions ' traditional Medicare compete Frist predicted the call would lawmakers in both parties' ' be answered "We are very directly with new private insur- tj Leading Senate Democrats-' and a plan to ance plans including Sen Edward M optimistic weMl be able to send 1 have been a bipartisan bill to the president encourage employers to main- -' Kennedy tain drug coverage for retirees critical of the details of the leg-- in the next lew days-- he islaiion as they have emerged officials said said ' Two key Democrats Sens Health and I luinan Services piecemeal from the closed-doo- r Max Baucus of Montana and talks "I remain deeply Secretary Tommy Thompson John Breaux of Louisiana troubled that this plan will signaled administration sup-po'- rt Frist Dennis undermine the and for the compromise in a' Speaker reliability joined Hastert of Illinois and other top affordability of Medicare for statement commending the our nation's seniors” Kennedy conferees lor reaching "a Republicans in Frist's office to said in a statement issued after announce the accord which bipartisan bill" aiid saying lie ' Baucus stressed would remain the agreement wus announced looked forward to "working tentative until lawmakers had a w ith the full Congress stiwe "We've not seen all the chance to see the dctailsof the details but it sounds like a bad cairgetthejohdojieinthe ' deal for seniors and a good complex legislation coming days'' deal for the big drug compa But the agreement ends Lawmakers believe they I D-S- I) tax-fre- aarp- AP photo Cadet pnllonp ounayc Cadets from The Citadel watch the 63rd : ' Military Classic of the South against Vir- ginia Military Institute at Memorial Stadi- gm on Saturday Nov 15 2003 jn Charlotte NC Louisiana picks first woman eleic-- V lion season that has Seen a string of-Republican " ' : Blanco's victory puis the v AY Louisiana governorship back " in the Democratic column for the first time in eight years' y With 95 percent ofprecincts counted Blanco had 52 percent or 691130 votes to Jindal's 48 percent' or y ' ' v " former Jindalya Rhodes Scholar whose par- - "' ents immigrated to Louisiana from India had been slightly favored partly due to strong backing from incumbent Gov ' Mike Foster But Blanco a Cajun accused him of harming the poor by enacting budget cuts when he served as Paster’s health sec- retary He later became an assistant health secretary for President Bush Had he won Jindal would have been the first elected governor in die Deep' South since Reconstruction A veteran of public office Blanco has had a low- ' key career first as a legislator' then as al Public Service Coni- missioncr and finally as lieu- tenant governor whercshe' oversaw the slate’s tourism efforts Her campaign drew ' sharp rontrasts between her- self as a warm - ed public servant aiul Jindal ' whom she depicted as a heart- less numbers cruncher and policy wonk While bpth candidates carved out blocs of fervent supporters many voters in this tradition-boun- d state appeared befuddled by the ballot choice — either because of resistance to supporting a woman or a or because the two candidates were so close ide- ologically ITiree GOP governors have been elected in die last two ' months If Jindal had won it would have given Republicans a clean sweep of all the governorships in the Deep South for the first time since Reconstruction non-whi- te 20-ye- ar family-orien- t- : non-whi- te -- l5 BEST SELECTIONS! " can and scoring a rare gain for 648915 ' ' rl- - - to start your llaliday Shopping! NEW ORLEANS (APJ — DemqcraticLt Gov Kathleen Blanco became the first woman ever elected governor of Louisiana on Saturday' defeating a conservative victories'-- the' Dillard's has everything you need Hurry in fur the an The new prnisul would in ' turn free up more money Ibr seniors who cur- receive their drug coverrently Medicaid the joint age through federal-state for program r' ' v poor - Baucus said the proposal r was more efficient and would provide u more bang lor the: buck" The changes were devised by Republicans and ' then presented to the two Democratic negotiators The legislation would install the most changes to the program since it was created in At its core beginIff in it would give 20 ning millions of older Aoiericuiisu prescription drug benefit projected to cost S4(K) billion oyer lO vears low-inco- ' " irnpemis have found a way to cut in half the number of retirees w ln would lose their private coverage by providing V70 billion in e subsidies ti their said That issue has been a top concern of the politically potent ' 1 - "- -- |