While numbers vary from carrier to carrier, it is expected that Medicare Part D (prescription) plans will increase by an average of 10% in 2011. Premiums have increased steadily over the years, but this one seems particularly steep. With the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, higher-income enrollees will pay a greater share of standard Part D costs, while low-income clients will continue to have access to plans with no monthly premium at all. Fortunately, all will benefit from health care reform when reaching the dreaded “doughnut hole”, as 2011 will bring some relief during this time. Manufacturer prices will be discounted by 50% and the plans will also cover 7% of generic drugs while in the coverage gap (between $2,840 and $4,550 in out of pocket spending), rather than requiring enrollees to cover 100% of their drug costs. Note that this applies only to original Medicare Supplement plans and Part D options, as most Medicare Advantage enrollees have drug coverage built into their plan.
Posts Tagged ‘part d’
Medicare Prescription Drugs Plan Premiums Increase in 2011
Thursday, January 6th, 2011Helping Seniors in the “Doughnut Hole”
Friday, July 3rd, 2009Medicare Part D is the drug portion of Medicare coverage. It is designed to assist with the overwhelming cost of medications, but there is one major flaw in their design – the gap in coverage called the “doughnut hole”. This is when the enrollee is responsible for covering the entire cost for their medications between $2,700 and $4,350. Studies show that one in four Part D enrollees reached the doughnut hole in 2007, and numbers have only increased since then.
What does this mean? Considering seniors are often living on very fixed incomes, these out of pocket expenses are too high, and results in medications being halved to make them last longer, or dosages being skipped altogether. This, of course, can create a very dangerous situation to these individuals, which clearly shows that something needs to be done.
One of the most important changes that can help to relive some of this burden would be a break in the costs of the medications themselves. Turning to the drug manufacturers has proven helpful, as they have agreed to reduce Medicare drug costs in a number of ways. From forgoing $80 billion dollars in revenues to offering substantial discounts in the medications themselves, it seems like the drug companies and Medicare drug coverage is headed in the right direction. We can only hope things continue to improve, and coverage for seniors remains comprehensive.
