Medicare Part D Plans change every year. Premiums and deductibles may change, and, worst of all, beneficiaries may find drugs they need taken off their plans’ formularies or made subject to new prior authorization rules and other restrictions. It is a necessity that beneficiaries and their helpers compare different plans before the Part D Annual Election Period from November 15 – December 31.
The Central Management Service projects that for 2011, 1.2 million beneficiaries will have to change plans as a result of plans leaving the market or reducing their service area. The vast majority of people who will need to change, 925,000 of them, are in Private Fee for Service (PFFS) plans that have decided they no longer want to participate in Medicare as a result of additional requirements passed in the 2008 Medicare Improvement for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), not the recent health care reform law. The changes from 2008 go into effect for the 2011 plan year.
Learn what you need to know to make the best decisions. See The Center for Medicare Advocacy website. http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/InfoByTopic/PartDandPrescDrugs/PartDMain.htm.
William Wombacher. Central Illinois Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA)
www.wombacherlaw.com
