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  • Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlights

    Issue Brief

    To better understand changes in the private plans providing drug coverage to Medicare beneficiaries under the program's Part D benefit, the Kaiser Family Foundation is issuing a series of data spotlights analyzing key elements of Medicare's private drug plans. Each spotlight will focus on a key aspect of the drug plans that will be available to Medicare beneficiaries in 2008 and examine relevant trends since the Medicare drug benefit took effect in 2006. >>More Recent…

  • Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlight: Premiums

    Issue Brief

    This Medicare Part D data spotlight analyzes the premiums charged by the 1,824 stand-alone Medicare Part D plans that will be offered in markets across the country in 2008. The analysis finds premiums charged for Part D plans range widely, from $9.80 per month to $107.50 per month. The average monthly premium would increase from $27.39 in 2007 to $31.99 if enrollees remain in their current plans next year – a 17 percent increase. Nearly…

  • Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlight: The Coverage Gap

    Issue Brief

    This Medicare Part D data spotlight examines the coverage gap, or “doughnut hole,” in Medicare drug plans available in 2008. Part D enrollees (other than those receiving low-income subsidies) will reach the coverage gap after they incur $2,510 in total drug costs in 2008. At that point, enrollees are required to pay 100 percent of drug costs until they qualify for catastrophic coverage. The analysis finds that in 2008, more than a quarter of stand-alone…

  • Overview of Medicare Part D Organizations, Plans and Benefits By Enrollment in 2006 and 2007

    Report

    This chartpack provides detailed information about Medicare beneficiaries’ enrollment in the many private drug plans available to them in 2007. The charts demonstrate that a relatively small number of companies which captured the most enrollees in 2006, the new benefit’s first year, continued to lead in market share in the current year. In addition, most enrollees in 2007 are in plans without gap coverage – with about 11.8 million people potentially at risk for reaching…

  • Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Progress Report: Findings From A 2006 National Survey of Seniors

    Event Date:
    Event

    The share of seniors without drug coverage dropped significantly under Medicare’s new drug benefit, according to this August 2007 Health Affairs Web Exclusive article based on a Kaiser Family Foundation, Commonwealth Fund and Tufts-New England Medical Center survey of more than 16,000 seniors. Seniors with drug coverage from any source were less likely to face high monthly drug costs or to skip prescribed medications due to cost than seniors who remained without drug coverage. However,…

  • The Role of State Pharmaceutical Assistance Programs in Serving Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries Following the Implementation of Medicare Part D

    Issue Brief

    The Role of State Pharmaceutical Assistance Programs in Serving Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries Following the Implementation of Medicare Part D Prior to January 1, 2006, State Pharmaceutical Assistance Programs helped to fill a critical gap in coverage for Medicare beneficiaries without prescription drug coverage, targeting resources to beneficiaries with relatively low incomes. With the inception of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, the role of SPAPs began to change. This policy brief examines the role of state…

  • Prescription Drug Sources Among Medicare Beneficiaries

    Report

    Note: Estimates are rounded to the nearest whole number, therefore do not sum to total. (1) Includes Veterans Administration, Indian Health Service, employer plans without retiree subsidies, employer plans for active workers, and state pharmaceutical assistance programs. (2) Includes employer/union, FEHB, and TRICARE coverage. (3) Approximately 0.5 million dual eligibles are enrolled in Medicare Advantage drug plans and are reported in this category. Source: HHS, January 30, 2007. Data as of January 16, 2007.

  • Private Plans In Medicare: A 2007 Update

    Issue Brief

    This March 2007 issue brief, commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation, examines changes between 2006 and 2007 in the availability of and enrollment in Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans overall and in urban and rural areas. It also focuses on the firms that are offering various types of Medicare plans. Marsha Gold of Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., prepared the brief. Issue Brief (.pdf)

  • Medicare Payments and Beneficiary Costs for Prescription Drug Coverage

    Issue Brief

    This March 2007 issue brief, commissioned by the Kaiser Family Foundation, provides a basic introduction to the reimbursement system for private Medicare drug plans. It explains the system of plan bidding and payment, including the special provisions for low-income enrollees, and considers how aspects of the payment system may affect the total cost of the drug benefit over time, the cost of coverage for beneficiaries and the variety and quality of available plans. Mark Merlis…