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November, 2006:
:: Finding Prescription Drug Bargains - Comparing Generics
:: Evaluating Part D Premiums - Is Cheaper Better?
:: A Few Good Medicare Part D Questions:
:: Getting a 2007 Part D Overview
:: Closing Notes
Finding Prescription Drug Bargains - Comparing Generics
Are you stuck in the Medicare Part D Doughnut Hole with no way out? You are not alone. About 4 Million people are spending the last portion of 2006 in the so-called Doughnut Hole or Coverage Gap, some will remain in the Coverage Gap until the start of 2007. If you are one of these people, you are seeing that the Catastrophic Portion of your Part D Coverage (when costs in 2006 are reduced to $2.00 for covered generics and $5.00 for covered Brand Name drugs) will not be reached and now you are considering alternatives to reduce costs before your next Part D plan begins in January 2007. What to do? Shopping around for better priced generics may be an alternative worth considering.
Prescription Drug Markups: It is a common misconception that drug prices do not vary, or at the least do not very much. While everyone realizes that there is a vast price gap between brand name drugs and their generic counterpart, they don’t realize the price difference from one pharmacy to another. There is a false perception that drug prices are somewhat standardized. It is a bonus for the prescription drug consumer when they begin to realize that, in every town across the country, pharmacies place a wide-ranging markup on their drugs. Surveys of pharmacies in California, Florida, and Michigan all demonstrate this marked difference in pricing of the same prescription drugs. For instance, in one study, the prices for Albuterol, prescribed for asthma, varied as much as $36 from one pharmacy to another. In Florida, it was reported that the cost of Naproxen varied from $16.54 up to $90.59 in the same county, depending on the pharmacy where it was purchased. Those conducting the surveys drew the same conclusion; compare prices on generics. Bargains are out there for prescription drugs, especially now for generics, with various retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kmart, and Meijer offering special pricing.
The Bottom Line: It pays to keep a close eye on what you are being charged for your prescriptions. If you are willing to do a bit of price comparison work, you may be able to save a substantial amount on at least some of your prescription drug needs. In the end this could be a help to consumers, especially those who find themselves in the Medicare Part D Doughnut Hole.
Looking for more? Read the complete article on Shopping for Generics:
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:: http://www.q1medicare.com/PartD-Newsroom-MedicarePartDinThePress.php?news_id=7
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Evaluating Part D Premiums - Is Cheaper Better?
For some, the Part D plan with the lowest cost premium (that still offers coverage for your particular medications) may not only be the most affordable, but also the best choice for your Medicare Part D coverage. Low premium plans may make more sense even over more expensive plans that offer extras such as doughnut hole coverage.
In working with thousands of Medicare Part D beneficiaries, we have noticed people in two categories of spending extremes that may be best served by choosing the lowest cost Part D plan that covers their medications.
(1) The easy scenario - little or no prescription drug usage. If you are taking no, or only a very few generic drugs and are enrolling in Part D to avoid a future premium penalty, then selecting a plan with the lowest premium available (that includes your drugs in it’s formulary) is probably your best choice. Some people we spoke with did not anticipate their prescription costs even to reach their plan’s initial deductibles (now $265 in 2007) - but they look at Part D for what it is: insurance.
(2) A more complicated situation - very high prescription drug needs - What if you are spending, for instance, retail costs of $800 per month for prescription drugs. In this situation, you would enter the Coverage Gap at the end of March 2007 and emerge out of the Doughnut Hole before the end of July 2007. The remainder of the year (a little over 5 months) would be spent in the Catastrophic Coverage phase of the Part D plan (paying $2.15 for generics and $5.35 for Brand Name drugs). As long as your medications are covered by your selected Part D Plan, paying a high monthly premium for Doughnut Hole Coverage may not be as cost effective as buying the lowest cost plan that provides coverage for your medications. Why? Because you spend less than 4 months in the Doughnut Hole and over 5 months in the Catastrophic Coverage phase. Note: It is crucial to ensure that your prescription medications are covered (compare the plan formularies (drug lists) found on our State pages, see the link under #4 below).
(3) How about an example for people who go into the Coverage Gap and never move into Catastrophic Coverage? We have an example online of a typical person spending around $250 dollars on prescription drugs. Click on the link below to see how they calculate their annual costs:
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:: http://www.q1medicare.com/PartD-Newsroom-MedicarePartDinThePress.php?news_id=8
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Premium Penalty 2006: What if you did not enroll by last May 15 and now you are wondering what the additional Premium Penalty will cost? If you were eligible and did not join a Medicare Part D plan during the Initial Open Enrollment Period you will pay an additional premium of $2.25 per month in 2007 (or $27 for the year).
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Getting a 2007 Part D Overview
Lost in all those Part D plans? Gain an overview of the 2007 Medicare Part D plans using our online tools at Q1Medicare.com:
State Pages - we have a complete overview of nationally available Medicare Part D plans - sorted alphabetically by State. Choose your State and browse through the plans. Select Plan information, Summary of Benefits, and Formularies (Drug Lists) are available for viewing or download. We also provide color coding to summarize the details.
Select your State from the following link:
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:: http://www.q1medicare.com/PartD-Medicare-PartD-Overview-by-State.php
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Plan Finder - we also have a new Medicare Part D Prescription Plan Overview Tool. With this simple tool, you can review Medicare Part D plans based on monthly Premiums, Deductibles, and Doughnut Hole Coverage - also find which plans provide full Medicare/Medicaid extra help. Click on the link below to try our free 2007 Medicare Part D Plan Finder:
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:: http://www.q1medicare.com/PartD-SearchPDPMedicarePartDPlanFinder.php
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Closing Notes
- Wednesday, November 15, 2006 - Annual Open Enrollment Period begins! You can join a new Prescription Drug Plan or Medicare Advantage Plan - Your new Plan coverage begins on January 1, 2007.
- Friday, December 8, 2006 - The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recommends that you enroll by December 8 to ensure receipt of your new Medicare Part D Membership Information before January 1, 2007.
- Sunday, December 31, 2006 - Annual Open Enrollment Period ends - don’t risk the penalty.
News and Feedback - our new BLOG (Web Log): Would you like to add comments to an Article (or Blog) for our Readers? Take a look at what others are saying!
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:: http://www.q1medicare.com/Blog-PartDCommunityBlogInformYourself.php
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Last updated on: 07/05/2009
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