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  • Medicare Advantage Enrollment Continues to Climb, but Financial Protections for Enrollees Are Eroding 

    News Release

    Enrollment in Medicare Advantage continues to climb steadily as spending reductions enacted in the Affordable Care Act reduce historical overpayments to the private plans, according to a new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation. But limits on out-of-pocket spending for Medicare-covered services are rising, providing less protection for enrollees with relatively high health care expenses.

  • To Switch or Be Switched: Examining Changes in Drug Plan Enrollment among Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy Enrollees

    Report

    During the Medicare Part D annual enrollment period, people on Medicare can review and compare stand-alone prescription drug plans (PDPs) and Medicare Advantage plans and switch plans if they choose. Low-income beneficiaries who receive premium and cost-sharing assistance through the Part D Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) program have a subset of premium-free PDPs (benchmark plans) available to them, but can also choose to enroll in a non-benchmark plan and pay a premium. This analysis examines plan changes among LIS enrollees in PDPs between 2006 and 2010.

  • Although a Small Share of Medicare Part D Enrollees Take Specialty Drugs, A New Analysis Finds Those Who Do Can Face Thousands of Dollars in Out-of-Pocket Drug Costs Despite Plan Limits on Catastrophic Expenses

    News Release

    Some Medicare Part D enrollees can expect to pay thousands of dollars out-of-pocket for a single specialty drug in 2016, even though Part D plans provide substantial protection against catastrophic costs, according to a new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

  • 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 Part D Prescription Drug Plans: The Marketplace in 2013 and Key Trends, 2006-2013

    Issue Brief

    This report presents findings from an analysis of the Medicare Part D marketplace in 2013 and changes in drug coverage and costs since 2006. It presents key findings related to Medicare drug plan availability, enrollment, premiums, low-income subsidies, the coverage gap, benefit design, cost sharing, formularies, and utilization management, based on data from CMS for all plans participating in Part D. The analysis was conducted jointly by researchers at Georgetown University, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago.

  • To Switch or Not to Switch: Are Medicare Beneficiaries Switching Drug Plans To Save Money?

    Issue Brief

    This analysis finds that relatively few Medicare beneficiaries have switched Part D prescription drug plans voluntarily during the annual open enrollment period -- even though those who do switch often lower their out-of-pocket costs as a result of changing plans. The vast majority (87% on average between 2006 and 2010) stayed in the same Part D plan, even though the plans can change premiums, deductibles, cost-sharing amounts, and their list of covered drugs each year. Higher rates of plan switching were observed in PDPs that increased premiums, increased deductibles, or dropped coverage of brand-name drugs in the coverage gap.

  • A Profile of African Americans, Latinos, and Whites with Medicare:

    Report

    This chartpack highlights demographic data about African Americans, Hispanics and whites with Medicare to highlight potential implications for outreach efforts under the new Medicare drug benefit. The information is being used in a series of November 2005 briefings at the start of the first open-enrollment period for the new benefit. Chartpack (.

  • Medicare Part D: A First Look at Prescription Drug Plans in 2017

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief provides an overview of the 2017 Medicare Part D stand-alone prescription drug plan marketplace, based on analysis of data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The brief focuses on data for 2017 and changes over time in plan availability, premiums, benefit design, cost sharing, and low-income subsidy plan availability.