Over the past few weeks, a variety of educational efforts have begun on the new Medicare prescription drug benefit... including individual mailings to millions of low-income Americans and a kick-off event hosted by President Bush in June. Slowly, the 41 million patients eligible for Medicare Part D are learning that they have a new option for prescription drug coverage coming on January 1... and therefore are beginning to seek information about it.

Q. When does enrollment begin?

A. Enrollment for Part D opens on November 15, 2005... and continues until May 15, 2006. Patients can enroll at any time during this period... however, eligible beneficiaries enrolling after May 15, 2006 will pay slightly higher monthly fees.

Q. Who is eligible? And how much will it cost?

A. Any patient eligible for Medicare Part A or enrolled in Part B can obtain prescription coverage through Part D. Millions of eligible beneficiaries will qualify as low-income and pay no monthly fees for the benefit... while others will pay approximately $37/month for the benefit.

Q. How much can patients expect to save?

A. Savings on prescription medications with the new benefit is highly dependent on beneficiaries' income and medication costs. Those with lower household incomes and higher drug spending will save more... however, any beneficiary on prescription medications covered under Part D will have the potential to save.

Q. Will all medications be covered under Part D?

A. Like most prescription drug plans, not all medications are covered. In particular, Medicare Part D will not pay for any vitamins, over-the-counter medications, or benzodiazepines.

Q. What is a “dual eligible?”

A. Much of the recent education on the new benefit has been focused on "dual eligibles," or patients with Medicaid coverage who are also eligible for Medicare Part D. On January 1, these patients will begin receiving prescription coverage through Medicare... not Medicaid. They will be automatically enrolled into a plan with the option to switch into another plan of their choice.

Q. How do patients enroll?

A. Although patients may be asking this question already, enrollment does not begin until November 15... and the drug plans which patients will need to choose from will not be finalized until early Fall. We'll keep you informed as new information becomes available.

This article courtesy of:

Soldotna Professional Pharmacy