CBO says Yes. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO.gov) has issued the following statement:
“The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) introduced a manufacturer discount program in Medicare Part D for brand-name drugs purchased in the coverage gap, often referred to as the 'doughnut hole.' CBO assumes this policy would increase the number of Part D beneficiaries receiving catastrophic coverage, since prescription drugs would be more affordable to the beneficiary, causing Part D spending to increase overall. As a result of these changes, [CBO] estimate[s] that Part D premiums would increase by about 3 percent starting in 2011. …The reconciliation bill would make additional changes to the structure of the Part D benefit. In addition to the discount program provided by manufacturers, Section 1101 would require that Part D plans cover more prescription drug costs for non-low income subsidy individuals in the doughnut hole over time. This policy change further increases Part D spending, compared to PPACA, because the benefit is more generous. Beneficiaries and the federal government share in program costs, which leads to an increase in premiums. According to CBO’s preliminary estimate, enacting those changes would lead to an average increase in premiums for Part D beneficiaries of about 4 percent in 2011. …However it is important to note that beneficiaries out-of-pocket spending on prescription drugs apart from those premiums would fall, on average, as would their overall out-of-pocket drug spending including premiums."
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/113xx/doc11379/Comparison.pdf
|
Enroll 2010
