HARRISBURG — Gov. Ed Rendell said Tuesday that he hopes to help thousands more seniors through the recession by making them eligible to join Pennsylvania's low-cost prescription drug program.

Expanding the program known as PACENET requires approval from the Legislature, and Rendell said he plans to pay the cost of the expansion by demanding bigger discounts from pharmaceutical firms. Under Rendell's plan, PACENET's income eligibility ceiling would rise to $30,000 from $23,500 for individuals, and to $40,000 for couples from the current $31,500.

Administration officials say increasing the income limits will probably attract another 30,000 people to the program at a cost of about $20 million. Requiring the same discount that the pharmaceutical companies give the federal Medicaid program would more than offset that cost, they say.

Pennsylvania is the nation's fourth-largest buyer of prescription drugs and will be able to command a better price from drugmakers, Rendell said.

Jeff Truitt, a spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, said the association is still reviewing the plan and had no comment. House Minority Leader Sam Smith, R-Jefferson, said the recession makes it a difficult time to expand a state program, but said he is willing to look at a proposal to seek a bigger discount from the drugmakers.

More than 350,000 seniors are enrolled in PACENET and its sister program, PACE, which serves Pennsylvania's lowest-income seniors, at a cost of about $300 million. State officials say it is more generous than the federal Medicare drug benefit.