Download or read book Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage For Dummies written by Patricia Barry and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2008-11-24 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Confused about Medicare’s drug coverage? You’re not alone. Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage For Dummies explains Part D in plain English and shows you how to find the best deal among numerous drug-coverage plan options. Whether you’re new to Medicare or already in the program, you’ll navigate the system with more ease and confidence, avoid pitfalls and scams, and have plenty of help choosing the plan that’s right for you. This easy-to-understand, consumer-friendly guide helps you find out whether Part D affects any drug coverage you already have and weigh the consequences of going without coverage. You’ll find ways to compare plans, identify the one that covers your drugs at the least cost, and make sure you sign up at the right time. And you’ll learn how to minimize your expenses, use the “right” pharmacies, and troubleshoot any problems with your coverage. Discover how to: Decide whether you need Part D Understand how Part D works, from costs to coverage Choose and enroll in the best plan for you Get up and running with Part D Handle the coverage gap Lower your drug costs Join and switch plans Comply with long-term-care rules and rights Challenge plan decisions Avoid scams and hard-sell marketing Now, more than ever, you need clear, reliable information that helps you understand Part D and make smart, cost-saving healthcare decisions. You need Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage For Dummies.
Download or read book The Medicare Handbook written by and published by . This book was released on 1989 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage for Dummies written by Patricia Barry and published by ReadHowYouWant.com. This book was released on 2008-10-28 with total page 474 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage For Dummies offers strategies to cut through the confusions of Part D, either for yourself or for someone you're helping. It explains the programs ins and outs in plain words. It shows you how to avoid or cope with pitfalls and suggests how you can lower your costs or find a better deal. Best of all, it convinces you that you can - yes, you can - handle Medicare Part D!
Download or read book Issues in Designing a Prescription Drug Benefit for Medicare written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit written by United States. Congress. Senate. Special Committee on Aging and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Your Guide to Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage written by U. S. Department Human Services and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2013-10-15 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Medicare prescription drug coverage (Part D) adds to your Medicare health care coverage. It helps you pay for both brand-name and generic drugs. Medicare drug plans are offered by insurance companies and other private companies approved by Medicare. You can get coverage two ways: Medicare Prescription Drug Plans (sometimes called "PDPs") add prescription drug coverage to Original Medicare, some Medicare Private Fee-for-Service (PFFS) Plans, some Medicare Cost Plans, and Medicare Medical Savings Account (MSA) Plans; Medicare Advantage Plans (like an HMO or PPO) or other Medicare health plans that offer prescription drug coverage. You generally get all of your Medicare Part A (Hospital Insurance), Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance), and Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) through these plans. Medicare Advantage Plans with prescription drug coverage are sometimes called "MA-PDs." In this publication, the term "Medicare drug plans" means all plans that provide Medicare prescription drug coverage. You must choose and join a Medicare drug plan to get Medicare prescription drug coverage. Everyone with Medicare has to make a decision about prescription drug coverage. If you don't use a lot of prescription drugs now, you still may think about joining a Medicare drug plan to help lower your prescription drug costs now and help protect against higher costs in the future. If you're new to Medicare and already have other prescription drug coverage, you have new options to think about. If you aren't new to Medicare, you may want to look over your options to find drug coverage that meets your needs. You can join or switch Medicare drug plans between October 15-December 7 each year, with your coverage beginning January 1 of the following year. To join a Medicare Prescription Drug Plan, you must have Medicare Part A or have Medicare Part B (Medical Insurance). To join a Medicare Advantage Plan or other Medicare health plan with prescription drug coverage, you must have Medicare Part A and Part B. You must also live in the service area of the Medicare health plan or drug plan you want to join. Medicare drug plans may be different from each other in the prescription drugs they cover, how much you have to pay, and which pharmacies you can use. All Medicare drug plans must give at least a standard level of coverage set by Medicare. However, plans offer different combinations of coverage and cost sharing. Having more than one plan to choose from helps you get the coverage you want at a price you can afford. Also available in Spanish.
Download or read book Medicare written by Leslie G. Aronovitz (au) and published by DIANE Publishing. This book was released on 2006-08 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On Jan. 1, 2006, Medicare began providing coverage for outpatient prescription drugs through its new Part D benefit. Beneficiaries who enroll in Part D may choose a drug plan from those offered by private plan sponsors under contract to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Serv. (CMS), which administers the Part D benefit. Beneficiaries have until May 15, 2006, to enroll in the Part D benefit & select a plan without the risk of penalties. This report reviews the quality of CMS's commun. on the Part D benefit. This report: examined 70 CMS publications to select 6 documents to review & evaluate the clarity of these texts; made 500 calls to the 1-800-MEDICARE help line; & evaluated the usability of the Medicare Web site. Illus.
Download or read book Medicare Prescription Drug Benefits written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Ways and Means. Subcommittee on Health and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 102 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Rare Diseases and Orphan Products written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2011-04-03 with total page 442 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rare diseases collectively affect millions of Americans of all ages, but developing drugs and medical devices to prevent, diagnose, and treat these conditions is challenging. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommends implementing an integrated national strategy to promote rare diseases research and product development.
Download or read book Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit written by Jennifer O'Sullivan and published by Novinka Books. This book was released on 2008 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 established a new voluntary prescription drug benefit under a new Medicare Part D, effective January 1, 2006. Prescription drug coverage is provided through private prescription drug plans (PDPs) or Medicare Advantage prescription drug (MA-PD) plans. Beneficiaries must enrol in one of these private plans in order to obtain their drug benefits. The program relies on these private plans to provide coverage and to bear some of the financial risk for drug costs; federal subsidies covering the bulk of the risk are provided to encourage participation. At a minimum, plans offer "standard coverage" or alternative coverage with actuarially equivalent benefits. They may also offer enhanced benefits. All plans are required to meet certain minimum requirements, including those related to beneficiary protections. However, there are significant differences among plans in terms of benefit design, drugs included on plan formularies (i.e., list of covered drugs), cost-sharing applicable for particular drugs, and monthly premiums. In general, beneficiaries can enrol in a plan, or change plan enrolment, when they first become eligible for Medicare or during the annual open enrolment period. The open enrolment period for 2008 is from November 15, 2007, to December 31, 2007. Plans can change from year to year. Beneficiary needs may also change. Therefore, beneficiaries should review their plan choice annually to make sure that their chosen plan continues to meet their needs.
Download or read book Implementing the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit and Medicare Advantage Program written by United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Finance and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A New Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Government Reform. Subcommittee on Human Rights and Wellness and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Benefit written by Susanne M. Kirchhoff and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2016-11-11 with total page 70 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA, P.L. 108-173) established a voluntary, outpatient prescription drug benefit under Medicare Part D, effective January 1, 2006. Medicare Part D provides coverage through private prescription drugplans (PDPs) that offer only drug coverage, or through Medicare Advantage (MA) prescription drug plans (MA-PDs) that offer coverage as part of broader, managed care plans. Private drug plans participating in Part D bear some financial risk, though federal subsidies cover most program costs in an effort to encourage participation and keep benefits affordable. At a minimum, Medicare drug plans must offer a "standard coverage" package of benefits or alternative coverage that is actuarially equivalent to a standard plan. Plans also may offer enhanced benefits. Although all plans must meet certain minimum requirements, there can be significant differences among offerings in terms of benefit design, specific drugs included in formularies (i.e., list of covered drugs), cost sharing for particular drugs, or the level of monthlypremiums. In general, beneficiaries can enroll in a plan, or change plan enrollment, when they first become eligible for Medicare or during open enrollment periods each October 15 through December 7. For plan year 2016, there are between 19 and 29 PDPs in each of the nation's 34 PDP regions, as well as Medicare Advantage plans. Because sponsors are allowed to change planofferings from year to year, beneficiaries must review their annual choices carefully to select theplans that best meet their needs. A key element of the Part D program is enhanced coverage for low-income individuals. Personswith incomes up to 150% of the federal poverty level (FPL) and assets below set limits are eligible for extra assistance with Medicare Part D premiums and cost sharing. Individuals enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid (so-called dual eligibles), and certain other low-incombeneficiaries, are automatically enrolled in no-premium plans, which are Part D plans that have premiums at or below specified levels. In 2015, about 39 million Medicare beneficiaries received prescription drug benefits through a PDP or an MA-PD, with almost one-third receiving a low-income subsidy. Another 2 million received drug assistance through a Part D-subsidized retiree health plan, and 8 million Medicare beneficiaries had separate, private drug coverage. Overall, about 88% of Medicare beneficiarieshad drug coverage through either PDP or MA-PD plans, retiree coverage, or private insurance ofcomparable scope. Total Part D expenditures were close to $90 billion in calendar year 2015. Medicare Part D has cost less than originally forecasted, due in part to lower-than-predicted enrollment and increased use of less expensive generic drugs. However, the Medicare Trustees project that spending on Part D benefits will accelerate over the next 10 years due to expectationof further increases in the number of enrollees, costs associated with the gradual elimination of the out-of-pocket cost coverage gap, changes in the distribution of enrollees among coverage categories, a slowing of the trend toward greater generic drug utilization, and an increase in the use and the prices of specialty drugs.
Download or read book Making Medicines Affordable written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2018-03-01 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thanks to remarkable advances in modern health care attributable to science, engineering, and medicine, it is now possible to cure or manage illnesses that were long deemed untreatable. At the same time, however, the United States is facing the vexing challenge of a seemingly uncontrolled rise in the cost of health care. Total medical expenditures are rapidly approaching 20 percent of the gross domestic product and are crowding out other priorities of national importance. The use of increasingly expensive prescription drugs is a significant part of this problem, making the cost of biopharmaceuticals a serious national concern with broad political implications. Especially with the highly visible and very large price increases for prescription drugs that have occurred in recent years, finding a way to make prescription medicinesâ€"and health care at largeâ€"more affordable for everyone has become a socioeconomic imperative. Affordability is a complex function of factors, including not just the prices of the drugs themselves, but also the details of an individual's insurance coverage and the number of medical conditions that an individual or family confronts. Therefore, any solution to the affordability issue will require considering all of these factors together. The current high and increasing costs of prescription drugsâ€"coupled with the broader trends in overall health care costsâ€"is unsustainable to society as a whole. Making Medicines Affordable examines patient access to affordable and effective therapies, with emphasis on drug pricing, inflation in the cost of drugs, and insurance design. This report explores structural and policy factors influencing drug pricing, drug access programs, the emerging role of comparative effectiveness assessments in payment policies, changing finances of medical practice with regard to drug costs and reimbursement, and measures to prevent drug shortages and foster continued innovation in drug development. It makes recommendations for policy actions that could address drug price trends, improve patient access to affordable and effective treatments, and encourage innovations that address significant needs in health care.
Download or read book The Medicare Part D Drug Program written by Jack E. Fincham and published by Jones & Bartlett Learning. This book was released on 2007 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What is the Medicare Part D Drug Benefit? How does it work? Am I eligible? How can I apply? The only book of its kind, this practical guidebook offers the answers to these questions and much more! Whether you're a senior, caregiver, or practicing healthcare professional, The Medicare Part D Drug Program: Making the Most of the Benefit clearly and concisely explains how the Medicare Part D Drug Benefit works, where to obtain clarification and further information about the Program, how and when to apply, and how to use the Benefit to help seniors. In an easy-to-use format featuring simple terminology, this book explains how the Medicare Part D Drug Program meshes with other insurance programs and offers essential information on the Benefit and its components.
Download or read book Creating a Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Energy and Commerce. Subcommittee on Health and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Designing a twenty first century Medicare prescription drug benefit written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Energy and Commerce. Subcommittee on Health and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 84 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
