SPRINGFIELD, IL- Senior citizens in Illinois are telling lawmakers to keep their hands off of a prescription drug program.
Many senior citizens rallied at the State Capitol Tuesday, in fear that the program they depend on will be eliminated as part of proposed Medicaid cuts.
A Medicaid reform package is now pending in the legislature that would cut millions of dollars, including a prescription drug program for seniors.
Seniors who were rallying on Tuesday say they need that program to live.
Sixty two-year-old Waldridge Witherspoon of Springfield says he needs medication every day just to live. He takes twelve pills every morning and lives on a fixed income. The program called Illinois Cares RX helps pay for his drugs and allows him to make ends meet.
Witherspoon says without the Illinois Cares RX program, he would have to pay over $2,400 each year on prescription medication.
About 200 seniors were at the Capitol Tuesday fighting to save that drug program. State Representative Mary Flowers joined them and says the state should not balance the budget on the backs of the states "most vulnerable residents."
Many of the seniors protesting say without the help of programs like these, they would be faced with the choice of paying for drugs or buying food.
