Seniors - Research and Data from KFF

Medicare Part D in 2016 and Trends over Time

Sep 16, 2016

Report

This chartpack presents a summary of Part D enrollment, premiums, cost sharing, benefit design and other key trends in 2016 and changes over time. For 2016, the analysis finds that 40% of Part D enrollees are now in Medicare Advantage drug plans, and over half of all enrollees are in plans offered by just three firms. The chartpack also highlights some concerning trends in the Low-Income Subsidy market, with the fewest number of premium-free plans available since Part D started, and 1.5 million LIS enrollees paying premiums for coverage, even though they have premium-free options available.

Similar but Not the Same: How Medicare Per Capita Spending Compares for Younger and Older Beneficiaries

Aug 16, 2016

Issue Brief

Since 1973, the program has also provided coverage to millions of people with permanent disabilities who are younger than age 65. This data note compares average per capita Medicare spending and service use for beneficiaries under age 65 to spending among those over age 65.

Analysis Finds End-of-Life Medicare Spending Declines With Age Among Seniors

Jul 14, 2016

News Release

Among beneficiaries who died in 2014, Medicare spent significantly more per person on medical services for seniors in their late sixties and early seventies than on older beneficiaries, according to a new data note from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Medicare Spending at the End of Life: A Snapshot of Beneficiaries Who Died in 2014 and the Cost of Their Care

Jul 14, 2016

Issue Brief

This data note provides a snapshot of Medicare beneficiaries who died in 2014 and their Medicare spending at the end of life. It examines Medicare per capita spending trends over time since 2000 and in 2014, both overall and by type of service, for beneficiaries in traditional Medicare who died in a given year compared to those who survived the year.

Streamlining Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services: Key Policy Questions

Mar 11, 2016

Issue Brief

This issue brief draws on features of the various existing Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) programs to identify key policy questions raised by initiatives to streamline Medicaid HCBS, ameliorate institutional bias, and improve administrative simplification.

Profile of Medicare Beneficiaries by Race and Ethnicity: A Chartpack

Mar 9, 2016

Report

This chartpack draws on data and analysis from a variety of sources to profile the Medicare population through the lens of race and ethnicity, describing life expectancy, demographic characteristics, income and savings, health status and chronic conditions, supplemental coverage, selected measures of access to care, and service utilization.

Allowing Medicare to Negotiate Drug Prices Is A Popular Idea But May Not Produce Substantial Savings

Feb 9, 2016

News Release

In response to rising drug costs, some policymakers and presidential candidates, including Republican Donald Trump and Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, have proposed allowing Medicare to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies over the price of prescription drugs, in contrast to the current approach under Medicare Part D drug where private plans do the negotiating.

Financial and Administrative Alignment Demonstrations for Dual Eligible Beneficiaries Compared: States with Memoranda of Understanding Approved by CMS

Dec 7, 2015

Issue Brief

This issue brief compares the financial alignment demonstrations for beneficiaries who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid in states that have memoranda of understanding approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

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

Dec 2, 2015

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

Dec 2, 2015

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.

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