Closing Part D Hole Saved Seniors $3.4B; Success of Health Law Facet Won't Last

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Byline: Paige Winfield Cunningham, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

Highlighting a top selling point of President Obama's health care overhaul, his administration said Monday that seniors have saved $3.4 billion on prescription drugs as the law begins to close the doughnut hole in Medicare's drug coverage scheme.

The savings are the latest evidence that the drug plan, known as Medicare Part D - signed by President George W. Bush and expanded by Mr. Obama - is helping contain costs for the country's elderly.

But darker financial clouds could lie down the road. The federal government picks up the added cost for drugs, and the price-per-senior is expected to grow faster …