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  • Options to Make Medicare More Affordable For Beneficiaries Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond

    Report

    Medicare provides significant health and financial protections to more than 60 million Americans, but there are gaps in coverage and high cost-sharing requirements that can make health care difficult to afford. This report analyzes several policy options that could help make health care more affordable for people covered by Medicare, especially beneficiaries with relatively low incomes: adding an out-of-pocket limit to traditional Medicare, adding a hard out-of-pocket cap to Part D, expanding financial assistance through the Medicare Savings Programs, and expanding financial assistance through the Part D low-income subsidy program.

  • KFF Health Tracking Poll – February 2019: Prescription Drugs

    Feature

    With increased national attention towards prescription drug costs, this poll examines the public’s experiences with prescription medicine and their views on current policy proposals brought forth by congressional lawmakers and the Trump administration, including international reference pricing, transparency in drug advertisements, and negotiations with drug companies. The survey also dives into the attitudes and experiences of adults, 65 and older – a group that is more likely to report taking prescription medication and shopped for prescription drug coverage.

  • It Pays to Shop: Variation in Out-of-Pocket Costs for Medicare Part D Enrollees in 2016

    Issue Brief

    This analysis focuses on out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare Part D enrollees in 2016 for specialty, brand, and generic drugs. Part D drug plans differ considerably in the drugs they list on their formularies, their use of formulary tiers, and the level and structure of cost sharing applied to those tiers. Plan decisions affect different beneficiaries in different ways, depending on the drugs they use. The financial consequences for Part D plan enrollees can be substantial. In addition to examining costs for common drugs, we also examine profiles of multiple drugs for several hypothetical Part D enrollees.

  • Medicare Advantage 2016 Spotlight: Enrollment Market Update

    Issue Brief

    This Data Spotlight reviews national and state-level enrollment trends as of March 2016 and examines variation in enrollment by plan type and firm. It analyzes the most recent data on premiums, out-of-pocket limits, Part D cost-sharing for drugs, and plans’ quality ratings for Medicare Advantage enrollees.

  • Medicare Part D at Ten Years: The 2015 Marketplace and Key Trends, 2006-2015

    Report

    Since 2006, Medicare beneficiaries have had access through Medicare Part D to prescription drug coverage offered by private plans, either stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs) or Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans (MA-PD plans). Now in its tenth year, Part D has evolved due to changes in the private plan marketplace and the laws and regulations that govern the program. This report presents findings from an analysis of the Medicare Part D marketplace in 2015 and changes in features of the drug benefit offered by Part D plans since 2006.

  • Medicare Advantage 2017 Spotlight: Enrollment Market Update

    Issue Brief

    This Data Spotlight reviews national and state-level enrollment trends as of March 2017 and examines variation in enrollment by plan type and firm. It analyzes the most recent data on premiums, out-of-pocket limits, Part D cost-sharing for drugs, and plans’ quality ratings for Medicare Advantage enrollees.

  • 10 Essential Facts About Medicare and Prescription Drug Spending

    Other

    Prescription drugs play an important role in medical care for 60 million seniors and people with disabilities, and account for nearly $1 out of every $5 in Medicare spending. This chart series examines trends in Medicare and beneficiary out-of-pocket spending on prescription drugs, and what the public thinks about different options for keeping drug costs down.

  • Open Enrollment: Insights from Medicare for Health Insurance Marketplaces

    News Release

    In the latest post in the Policy Insights series, Tricia Neuman draws on the experiences of Medicare beneficiaries during Medicare’s annual enrollment period to consider whether consumers with health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s new marketplaces will shop for a better deal during their open enrollment season. Previous columns in the Policy Insights series are also available on kff.org.