Approximately 83 seniors on Government's basic health care plan are without prescription benefits while they wait to find out if they will be included in the second phase of FutureCare.

The second phase of the Government's extensive health plan for seniors will be unveiled after next week's Budget debate.

It is not yet known what the criteria for the second phase of FutureCare will be.

As of December last year, 2,671 people were enrolled in FutureCare approximately 33 percent of the Island's senior population.

This included people who were enrolled in the Government's basic programme HIP prior to March 2009 as well as any senior deemed "indigent" or anyone who turned 65 after April last year.

Government closed HIP to those over 65 in April last year. At the time it transferred the $1,200 prescription drug benefit seniors had been eligible for from HIP to FutureCare.

Seniors on FutureCare are now eligible for $2,000 worth of prescription drug benefits.

But Government was forced to reopen HIP to seniors in late 2009 after private health insurers ceased offering affordable health coverage for seniors, or went bankrupt.

As of January 20 this year, 83 seniors had enrolled in HIP.

This means that seniors now on HIP have had to dig into their own pockets to cover any medicine they need.

Opposition spokesman for health Louise Jackson said seniors were suffering as a result and were getting unequal treatment for similar payment.

Those with FutureCare pay approximately $260 a month while those on HIP pay $240 a month.

The FutureCare plan covers unlimited doctors' visits as well as prescription and vision benefits while HIP does not.

"Seniors are suffering from no prescription benefit of $1,200 a year that they used to get from HIP," Mrs. Jackson said.

"It has been stopped and they are upset. FutureCare seniors who get $2,000 a year for prescriptions are paying $18.85 more than [seniors on HIP pay]."

Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Health Warren Jones said: "As relates to the prescription drug benefit, the prescription drug benefit was transferred from HIP to the FutureCare Plan when FutureCare was introduced in April 2009. Since there were no seniors on HIP from April 2009 until January 4, 2010, it would be incorrect to imply that the Government has taken a benefit away from seniors.

"As has been noted previously, HIP is a basic insurance plan. Therefore, there are no plans to introduce a prescription benefit."

Mrs. Jackson also criticised Health Minister Walter Roban for saying there were 400 seniors without health insurance, adding that they might be put off by the unequal coverage of the two plans. In early February the Minister said approximately four percent of the Island's senior population were not privately or publicly insured. He said he did not know why this was, but urged them to contact the Ministry.

"He wants to know why seniors have not come forward to join HIP," she said. "They have probably read the FutureCare brochure or done the math themselves."