A nonprofit group that helps the IRS set the standards for health benefits cards has approved President Donald Trump's plan to send $200 Medicare drug discount cards to beneficiaries, clearing a major hurdle, Politico reported.
The Special Interest Group for Inventory Information Approval System Standards governs electric point-of-sale transactions. Its approval is necessary to mass-produce the Medicare drug cards, and the group approved the plan Dec. 14, according to Politico.
The group previously said the cards don't meet typical standards for health benefit cards, and it wasn't expected to approve them, experts told Politico. Its approval was one of the last barriers to sending the cards to millions of Medicare beneficiaries.
The cards still face logistical challenges that may stop them from being delivered, four people involved in the planning told Politico. For instance, the government has yet to figure out how to tell seniors about the cards and aren't sure how many can be sent out before Mr. Trump leaves office in January.
The president pitched the plan to send one-time $200 Medicare drug discount cards to beneficiaries in September. But the plan has faced several hurdles, including the HHS General Counsel Robert Charrow warning that it may violate election law because of how close to the presidential election it was announced.
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