Post by Rick Warder on Dec 10, 2005 15:23:40 GMT -5
Pretty interesting. Might be worth reading.
E.
Readers Wonder How to Choose
A Medicare Prescription-Drug Plan
By SARAH RUBENSTEIN
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE
November 4, 2005
In less than two weeks, seniors can begin signing up for Medicare's long-awaited prescription-drug benefit.
Readers have sent Out of Pocket a number of questions about the new program, which will offer drug coverage to millions of seniors and the disabled. This column addresses some of the most common queries. Write to outofpocket@wsj.com with your questions about the Medicare drug benefit or other health-cost issues.
***
Is it possible to figure out how much you'd pay for your drugs under different Medicare plans? a reader asks.
Medicare officials are developing what should be an efficient method for doing this: the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder. Eventually, it's expected to provide information on how much your drugs would cost as a group under different plans.
But the tool still isn't finished.
In September, Medicare officials had said Web tools would be available Oct. 13. Later, they said they would delay the launch to avoid a conflict with the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. By Oct. 17, the tools were posted online, though all of the features weren't ready. At that time, Mark McClellan, administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said the rest of the features would be available "well before" the enrollment period that runs from Nov. 15 to May 15, 2006.
Thursday, a Medicare spokesman said the drug-plan finder will be fully functional before Nov. 15, though he did not specify a date. He says Medicare has been waiting for insurers to provide all of the appropriate information to do the drug-cost comparisons. (See this article about the wait.)
***
Can you sign up for an inexpensive plan now, and then switch to a different plan later on if your drug needs change? asks Bill Lane, of Plano, Texas.
Yes, that's an option.
Every state but Alaska has at least one Medicare prescription-drug plan with monthly premiums below $20. While these plans are relatively inexpensive, the trade-off is that their coverage will likely be less generous than what's offered by other plans. So when you need prescription medicine, you may have to pay more of the cost yourself.
Still, if you're healthy now, that risk may not bother you. And, as Mr. Lane suggests, you could switch to a more expensive -- and more generous -- plan if you get sick later in life.
One issue to keep in mind, however: You generally can't switch plans on a moment's notice. After the May 15, 2006 deadline for signing up, the typical enrollment period for Medicare drug plans will run from Nov. 15 to Dec. 31 each year, with coverage starting the following January. So if you were to get sick in March, for instance, you generally wouldn't be able to start with a new plan until the following January.
Click on this map to find plans available in your state.
***
What about getting drug coverage through Medigap? asks Elaine Haller, of Los Angeles.
Many Medicare beneficiaries buy supplemental insurance plans, called Medigap, that help pay deductibles, co-payments and other expenses that Medicare doesn't cover. Soon, Medigap won't work the same way.
There are 10 main Medigap plans, lettered A to J, plus two new ones that are being rolled out, K and L. Plans H, I and J currently offer some drug coverage.
As of Jan. 1, it will no longer be possible to buy drug coverage through plans H, I and J. If you already are enrolled in one of those three plans, you're allowed to drop the drug coverage part, or you can keep it. But there's a risk that your plan will increase in price more quickly than in the past, says Melissa Gannon, a vice president at Weiss Ratings Inc., a Jupiter, Fla., insurance-ratings company.
Also, most of the Medigap plans that offer drug coverage won't be considered "creditable," or at least as good as what the standard Medicare drug benefit offers. If you stick with the Medigap drug coverage and then decide to switch to the Medicare drug benefit later, you'll be charged a late-enrollment penalty. (See this article on how the penalty works.)
"They don't have much attraction," says Ms. Gannon.
***
A common question from readers: Is my coverage creditable?
That is, is drug coverage you already have through a source such as a former employer or union at least as good as Medicare's standard offering? If not, you'll face a late-enrollment penalty if you stick with your older coverage and decide later on you want to switch.
Health insurers and other entities that currently provide drug coverage -- including employers and unions -- are required to answer that question in writing this fall.
The written notice may not be a separate mailing. Some notices may be within other materials you receive, such as general plan enrollment or renewal materials. However, the text is required to be "prominent and conspicuous," according to government guidelines.
Keep the written notice, says Peter Ashkenaz, a Medicare spokesman. If you decide to switch to a Medicare drug plan later on, you'll need proof that you were covered by a plan that was creditable to avoid the penalty.
E.
Readers Wonder How to Choose
A Medicare Prescription-Drug Plan
By SARAH RUBENSTEIN
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE
November 4, 2005
In less than two weeks, seniors can begin signing up for Medicare's long-awaited prescription-drug benefit.
Readers have sent Out of Pocket a number of questions about the new program, which will offer drug coverage to millions of seniors and the disabled. This column addresses some of the most common queries. Write to outofpocket@wsj.com with your questions about the Medicare drug benefit or other health-cost issues.
***
Is it possible to figure out how much you'd pay for your drugs under different Medicare plans? a reader asks.
Medicare officials are developing what should be an efficient method for doing this: the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder. Eventually, it's expected to provide information on how much your drugs would cost as a group under different plans.
But the tool still isn't finished.
In September, Medicare officials had said Web tools would be available Oct. 13. Later, they said they would delay the launch to avoid a conflict with the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. By Oct. 17, the tools were posted online, though all of the features weren't ready. At that time, Mark McClellan, administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said the rest of the features would be available "well before" the enrollment period that runs from Nov. 15 to May 15, 2006.
Thursday, a Medicare spokesman said the drug-plan finder will be fully functional before Nov. 15, though he did not specify a date. He says Medicare has been waiting for insurers to provide all of the appropriate information to do the drug-cost comparisons. (See this article about the wait.)
***
Can you sign up for an inexpensive plan now, and then switch to a different plan later on if your drug needs change? asks Bill Lane, of Plano, Texas.
Yes, that's an option.
Every state but Alaska has at least one Medicare prescription-drug plan with monthly premiums below $20. While these plans are relatively inexpensive, the trade-off is that their coverage will likely be less generous than what's offered by other plans. So when you need prescription medicine, you may have to pay more of the cost yourself.
Still, if you're healthy now, that risk may not bother you. And, as Mr. Lane suggests, you could switch to a more expensive -- and more generous -- plan if you get sick later in life.
One issue to keep in mind, however: You generally can't switch plans on a moment's notice. After the May 15, 2006 deadline for signing up, the typical enrollment period for Medicare drug plans will run from Nov. 15 to Dec. 31 each year, with coverage starting the following January. So if you were to get sick in March, for instance, you generally wouldn't be able to start with a new plan until the following January.
Click on this map to find plans available in your state.
***
What about getting drug coverage through Medigap? asks Elaine Haller, of Los Angeles.
Many Medicare beneficiaries buy supplemental insurance plans, called Medigap, that help pay deductibles, co-payments and other expenses that Medicare doesn't cover. Soon, Medigap won't work the same way.
There are 10 main Medigap plans, lettered A to J, plus two new ones that are being rolled out, K and L. Plans H, I and J currently offer some drug coverage.
As of Jan. 1, it will no longer be possible to buy drug coverage through plans H, I and J. If you already are enrolled in one of those three plans, you're allowed to drop the drug coverage part, or you can keep it. But there's a risk that your plan will increase in price more quickly than in the past, says Melissa Gannon, a vice president at Weiss Ratings Inc., a Jupiter, Fla., insurance-ratings company.
Also, most of the Medigap plans that offer drug coverage won't be considered "creditable," or at least as good as what the standard Medicare drug benefit offers. If you stick with the Medigap drug coverage and then decide to switch to the Medicare drug benefit later, you'll be charged a late-enrollment penalty. (See this article on how the penalty works.)
"They don't have much attraction," says Ms. Gannon.
***
A common question from readers: Is my coverage creditable?
That is, is drug coverage you already have through a source such as a former employer or union at least as good as Medicare's standard offering? If not, you'll face a late-enrollment penalty if you stick with your older coverage and decide later on you want to switch.
Health insurers and other entities that currently provide drug coverage -- including employers and unions -- are required to answer that question in writing this fall.
The written notice may not be a separate mailing. Some notices may be within other materials you receive, such as general plan enrollment or renewal materials. However, the text is required to be "prominent and conspicuous," according to government guidelines.
Keep the written notice, says Peter Ashkenaz, a Medicare spokesman. If you decide to switch to a Medicare drug plan later on, you'll need proof that you were covered by a plan that was creditable to avoid the penalty.