October 15th is just around the corner, which means that it’s time for open enrollment for Medicare Part D drug plans. If you are eligible and want to sign up for or change your plan, you have until December 7th to do so.
Comparing plans is no easy task. First, you need to consider a plan’s drug coverage to make sure it covers the meds you take, and then its costs. Then there are monthly premiums and deductibles. And then there’s the stuff you can’t figure out based only on numbers: Is your plan accepted at your local pharmacy? Do you need to use a mail order pharmacy? How is the customer service?
Luckily, our sister site MedicareDrugplans.com can help you evaluate those questions. It lets you compare deductibles, monthly premiums, and coverage during the “donut hole”. More importantly, you can look at drug plan reviews and ratings written by your peers, which can reveal more subtle problems with plans, such as poor wait times for customer service, unexpected formulary changes, or dissatisfaction with mail-order pharmacy options.
For some examples, read what consumers in Florida are saying in Florida about the AARP MedicareRx Enhanced plan:
2011: “Medication I need was suddenly pulled from the formulary and AARP won’t even consider it with doctor’s intervention. They care less about patient care and more about the bottom line.”
2012: “The co-pay is more than what I would pay with plain medicare.”
2013: “Takes too long to get prescriptions from mail order; too many additional authorizations from doctors who are too busy to deal with this extra paperwork.”
Please know that these are just a few examples of reviews and that some people may have benefited greatly from this plan. It could be no worse than most others and better than some, but the complaints are representative of those we’ve found written about many plans.
Once you’ve viewed ratings and reviews, and even written one yourself, head over to Medicare.gov to make sure the plan covers your meds, compare final costs, and then sign up for the right plan. The average premium nationally is $53.80, and the maximum annual deductible is $310, down $15 from last year.
Research and choose your plan carefully. Whatever plan you go with will start January 1st, 2013 and last for a full year – so make it the right one for you! Visit MedicareDrugPlans.com today.
