By Annapolis Digest
Friday, March 14, 2008; B05

About 7,500 low- and moderate-income Maryland senior citizens would be eligible for a subsidy for their prescription drugs under legislation that cleared the General Assembly today.

Under a deal lawmakers reached with CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, seniors would be able to close a gap in Medicare drug coverage known as a doughnut hole. The Medicare benefit, passed by Congress in 2003, covers annual costs up to $2,510, but seniors then have to pay all of their drug costs until total spending out of pocket hits $4,000. Coverage kicks back in after that.

The new subsidy would be available to seniors with incomes from Social Security benefits or retirement plans up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level, about $30,000 for a single person. CareFirst has agreed to pay the annual $7 million cost of the program. The benefit would average $1,000 per person, with the exact amount depending on a senior's drug costs.

Gov. Martin O'Malley (D), who announced the deal last month with House Health Committee Chairman Peter A. Hammen (D-Baltimore), is expected to sign the bill.

-- Lisa Rein

The Senate voted unanimously yesterday to pass legislation proposed by Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) to close gaps in federal care for returning veterans by establishing a $3.5 million pilot program to help veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan obtain care for mental and behavioral health problems.

The bill was a key component of the legislative agenda of Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown (D), who is an Iraq war veteran. A similar bill is pending in the House, which has not voted on it.

-- Philip Rucker

The Senate voted unanimously yesterday to make it a crime to use the name or picture of a dead military service member in a for-profit enterprise without permission from the service member's relatives.

The Fallen Soldier Privacy Act exempts news agencies that report on the deaths of service members, as well as politicians and artists. The bill was inspired by events following the 2006 death in combat of Army Pfc. Eric M. Kavanagh, 20, of Severna Park. Kavanagh's family objected that his name was used on T-shirts and other items for sale.

A similar bill already passed unanimously in the House.

-- Philip Rucker

The Senate voted unanimously yesterday to impose stiffer civil fines but no jail time on adults who hand a drink to someone younger than 21.

Senators removed criminal penalties of up to 60 days in jail proposed by the bill's sponsor, Sen. Larry E. Haines (R-Carroll County).

It is illegal in Maryland for anyone but a parent to give alcohol to someone younger than 21, the legal drinking age. The violation is punishable by a civil fine, although police officers can seek criminal penalties if the underage drinker is younger than 18.

Civil penalties under the bill would increase from $1,000 to $2,500 for a first offense and from $1,500 to $5,000 for a second.

The House has passed a version of the measure that includes jail time, so the versions must be reconciled.

-- Lisa Rein

The Senate gave final approval yesterday to a bill to save state banks from paying damages from a potentially costly class-action suit.

For years, the banks have imposed penalties on borrowers who pay off home equity loans early, in exchange for waiving closing costs. They sought the legislature's help after the Maryland Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ruled in December that the fees were illegal. The borrower who brought the case against the banks is represented by the law firm of Baltimore Orioles owner Peter G. Angelos.

The bill would reinstate the banks' authority to charge early payment fees and would prohibit homeowners from seeking from the banks the damages that the courts said they were entitled to.

The bill was among the most controversial in the session, opposed by some senators who said it was bailing out a powerful industry.

The vote was 34 to 10, with Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) in opposition. The House has approved a similar measure.

-- Lisa Rein

The House of Delegates began a spirited debate yesterday on a bill to establish a new misdemeanor charge for low-level drug dealers.

Del. Curtis S. Anderson (D-Baltimore), the bill's sponsor, said Maryland's drug laws penalize addicts who sell drugs to support their addiction as heavily as volume dealers, who can receive a maximum of 20 years in prison for a first offense.

The bill would provide a five-year maximum for those caught with up to four grams of heroin or cocaine. Anderson said dozens of states have enacted similar laws.

Opponents, however, said many offenders caught with relatively small quantities of drugs are selling for kingpins and should not receive leniency from the court system.

Debate is expected to resume today.

-- Lisa Rein