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  • The Effects of Formularies and Other Cost Management Tools on Access to Medications:  An Analysis of the MMA and the Final Rule

    Issue Brief

    This report examines the formulary and cost management provisions of the final Medicare regulations implementing the new Medicare Part D drug benefit that was passed as part of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003, and their implications for people with Medicare who enroll in new drug plans and their access to medications. It was prepared for the Foundation by Jack Hoadley, Ph.D., of the Health Policy Institute at Georgetown University. Issue Brief (.pdf)

  • Chartpack: Seniors and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit

    Poll Finding

    These charts highlight data from a poll on Seniors and the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, conducted jointly by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health between November 9 and 19, 2006. It included a nationally representative sample of 718 seniors, including 275 who reported being enrolled in a Medicare drug plan. The questions about experiences under the Medicare drug benefit were part of a larger survey of 1,867 adults on the…

  • Medicare Part D Spotlight: Part D Plan Availability in 2011 and Key Changes Since 2006

    Report

    This initial analysis examines the private stand-alone Part D drug plans will be available to Medicare beneficiaries in 2011 and provides an early look at key trends in the options, premiums, and other plan characteristics. It finds that the average Medicare beneficiary will have a choice of 33 Part D stand-alone prescription drug plans in 2011, despite a 30 percent reduction in the total number of stand-alone plans available nationwide. Monthly premiums for stand-alone prescription…

  • Pitching Private Medicare Plans: An Analysis of Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plan Advertising

    Other Post

    This Kaiser Family Foundation report analyzes the content and frequency of television, print and radio advertisement for private Medicare plans that ran nationally or in one of three local media markets (Miami/Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Phoenix, Ariz.; and Greensboro, N.C.) during the marketing and enrollment period for 2008 plan offerings. All ads were identified by VMS, a media monitoring service. The study finds that insurers last year placed three times more advertisements to promote Medicare Advantage…

  • Prescription Drug Procurement and the Federal Budget

    Issue Brief

    This brief commissioned by the Foundation considers areas where Medicare faces limited opportunity for market-based competition and price negotiation to drive down drug spending. These areas include drug purchasing for low-income people enrolled in Part D plans who face minimal cost-sharing requirements, and purchasing certain unique drugs, such as biologicals, that have no therapeutic alternatives or competitors. Authored by Richard G. Frank of Harvard University, the brief discusses policy options that could lower Medicare spending…

  • The Landscape of Private Firms Offering Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage in 2006

    Issue Brief

    describes key characteristics of the organizations that offer the new Medicare drug benefit and analyzes how companies are positioning themselves to attract Medicare enrollees. • Seven of the 10 organizations that sponsor stand-alone prescription drug plans nationwide are based in commercial insurance firms with substantial Medicare Advantage experience, and three of the 10 firms are in the pharmacy benefit management and service sector. • Nine of the 10 organizations that sponsor stand-alone prescription drug plans…

  • The Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy Program: Experience to Date and Policy Issues for Consideration

    Issue Brief

    This policy brief examines the low-income subsidy program that provides premiums and cost-sharing assistance under Part D plans, documenting trends in both beneficiary and plan participation over time. With fewer plans available to low-income enrollees without having to pay a premium, and annual changes in those plans, the brief discusses challenges facing low-income Part D enrollees and strategies that could be used to increase the effectiveness of the subsidy program. It was prepared for the…

  • Tracking Poll Finds Seniors Split on Medicare Drug Benefit

    Poll Finding

    Tracking Poll Finds Seniors Now Split on Medicare Drug Benefit This August tracking survey shows modest progress in seniors' knowledge about the Medicare drug benefit. Also, for the first time, the tracking poll shows seniors are as likely to say that they have a favorable impression of the drug benefit as an unfavorable one. The Kaiser Health Poll Report Survey was conducted and analyzed by researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation. A nationally representative sample…