by PharmacyChecker.com | Oct 10, 2011 | Drug Prices, Medicare Drug Plans
An article published last week in Reuters suggests that Medicare Part D drug plans may be dropping premium prices – an effect of the healthcare reform law which could greatly benefit seniors if they shop around. Reevaluating your Medicare drug plan yearly during the open enrollment period is always a good idea, but this year plan selection could make a big difference.
Although we reported in August that plan premiums will not raise in 2012, Avalere Health, a health policy consulting firm, finds that while 10 of the top Part D plans will lower prices, six plans will raise premiums. However, the good news is that in the larger picture Avalere “projects that average premiums for both prescription drug and Advantage plans will fall 4 percent for 2012.” Because of the 2010 heath reform law, Dan Mendelson, Avalere Health’s CEO, is calling this a “year of change.” He tells Reuters, “It’s a year where patients really need to shop.”
MedicareDrugPlans.com provides ratings and reviews – along with basic plan information such as deductibles and premiums– for consumers to access during their research period. Ratings and comments help Medicare enrollees understand the pros and cons of a plan, and user comments and forum posts give details on what other Americans experienced with their plans.
Open enrollment will be from October 15th – December 7th this year, a change from previous years meant to give Medicare enough time to process all changes and new enrollees, and for consumers to manage their health needs before the busy holiday season.
Tagged with: Avalere Health, deductibles, Drug Prices, Medicare, Medicare Drug Plans, Medicare Part D, medicaredrugplans.com, Open Enrollment, premiums, Reuters, save money
by Gabriel Levitt, Vice President, PharmacyChecker.com and Margaret Rode, PharmacyChecker.com | Nov 23, 2010 | Medicare Drug Plans
Many Medicare enrollees shopping for drug plans this open enrollment season may be lured in by the offers with the lowest premiums, when in fact these plans can make for poor choices. What’s most important when choosing a Part D plan is that the drugs you need are covered; and if the plan doesn’t cover your meds, then plain and simple, it is not a good option for you. To find out which plans include the drugs you take, you can use the government’s website, found here: Medicare Plan Finder.
Blindly choosing the plan with the lowest monthly premium means you’re more likely to neglect researching drug coverage and other crucial factors about your Part D drug plan. For instance, if your plan is linked with a preferred drugstore, location could be a problem. This worry is highlighted in a recent AP article, as the Humana/Wal-Mart plan with the lowest premium on the whole Medicare list is causing trouble for some. While the competitive premium prices from Humana and other Part D providers are drawing attention as factors in picking a plan, accessibility, co-pays, deductible and coverage in the doughnut hole must be considered in addition to the most critical factor – the drugs covered on a plan’s formulary. (more…)
Tagged with: accessibility, affordable prescriptions, co-pays, deductible, doughnut hole, Drug Prices, Humana, Medicare, Medicare Drug Plans, medicare plan finder, medicaredrugplans.com, Part D, premiums, save money, seniors, United States, Wal-Mart
