Medicare Part D

medicare.gov

You need the person's medicare number to make it work.

Here is a good article for you that might help you understand the program. It's from the aarp bulliten and its in plain english...which is what I think everyone needs to understand all of this. Hope it helps.

http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/medicarerx/

Good Luck

Medicare Part D
Yes, Go to www.cms.hhs.gov/ and you will be walked through the whole process. The only problem is that there are so many plans (30 here in Massachusetts alone) that you can't print out a nice comparative table; you have to do each plan separately. But by going to the site for your state & listing your medications you can get a pretty good picture of how many plans are available in your state that cover most or even all of your medications, and can then follow up for prices plan by plan, and select a pharmacy.

P.S. You have a choice - enter just the name of the drug or enter the specific dosages; you will get a better picture if you enter the specific information.

Also, www.medicare.gov/

Try this:

http://formularyfinder.medicare.gov/formularyfinder/selectstate.asp

Same site, actually. And with care and attention it is quite possible to find all the info you need.

I navigated it for both of us, and wound up with AARP because they covered the most drugs, even with a low monthly payment. Their copays are higher than we have been used to, but on the other hand the monthly payment is much less, so I'm hoping, despite my original pessimism (on hold for the time being) that we'll pretty much breeak even.

I linked to the Formulary Finder, but the link takes you to the main page. The important thing is to check to see if the drugs that you are taking are in the Formulary, and at what level they are.There is a difference amongst plans in terms of the percentage of medications that are in their formulary.

I also opted for A.A.R.P. I downloaded the entire 55 pages of the formulary for reference. The formulary that AARP sends you is abridged.

I always take a "worst case scenario" attitude. I want to make sure, that if anything unexpected occurs, that I will be covered. Right now, I probably won't come out ahead, but who knows what will be in the future!

My mom had been on an H.M.O. At 96, she uses a LOT of medical service. Doing the math, I figured that she would do better with Medicare, a Medigap policy, and the A.A.R.P. Part D program. What is nice is that she has a much wider choice in terms of doctors and services, even though she now has to pay a hefty premium.

Yeah, I've heard a lot of people have ended up going with AARP. My parents are leaning toward that as well. Are they giving the best rate or the best coverage?? Why does their's seem to be the best?

Our folks went with Humana.
Our folks went with Humana:

http://www.humana-medicare.com/pdplanding.asp

They had almost decided on AARP, but thought Humana was less expensive.

However, selecting a Part D Plan depends on where you live, the drugs you (or the "client") take(s), and a few other considerations. One size does NOT fit all. You do need to figure out what you want - need - from them and what they offer. Search carefully and then decide. Good luck!

AARP looked really good until I found out that one of the drugs my mother takes would have cost her $56 per month on that plan. You have to look at the cost of each drug on each plan not just the cost of the monthly premium. On the plan we chose, the same drug will cost $4 per month.

First, A.A.R.P. is a huge, reliable company, that has a lot of clout in terms of making deals with the drug manufacturers. I forget the %, but it was pretty high as far as the number of drugs in the formulary were concerned. There is no deductable. The premium is reasonable. (It varies by state, but in my state it was $26.68 per month).

In my state, there were many choices. I was not going to go through all the small companies (which fall by the wayside with amazing regularity).

I was pleased when I heard that they were leaning toward aarp's plan for just reason that I think that its so huge and reliable. So its great to know that they are going with one that won't be absurdly expensive either.

Thanks so much.

Re: Our folks went with Humana.


That's what I've found, that it really just takes time and effort to figure out that works for best for your needs. It sure would be nice if there was a cookie cutter answer! huh? thank you as well.

Medicare Part D
We went with AARP because, although the copays are high, there is no deductible, and the monthly premium is only $23.69, which will help make up the difference.

That being said, I still think we will end up behind. This would apply regardless of which plan. Medicare D is a benefit only to the insurance and pharmaceutical companies.

And I don't know about accessing other plans, but it is nearly impossible to reach anyone at AARP. Schedule your attempts at doing that for a day when you have no other obligations. I was on the phone for nearly 2 hours one time, and a total of 1 hour another time during which I spent 45 minutes just waiting, and 15 minutes on hold after talking to a human being and then realizing that the call had been lost; I was back to Square One. (These are only 2 instances.) An hour or two waiting is not at all unusual with them. If you like to read, you can get a lot of books finished - but I don't think that was the point of Medicare D.

I assume this will shake out after a (long) while, but unfortunately AARP has only the one number for all questions. I need Prior Authorization for one drug and can't get through to anyone who can tell me where or how to request it. In any case, questions other than those dealing with registration are not, as far as I know, handled by the AARP call center (1-888-867-5575 and good luck to you). Who handles them, the Lord only knows. I sure don't.

I could be wrong, but it seems to me that your doctor would be the one who would have to get the prior authorization. He would have to demonstrate that a particular drug is required, and that substitutes would not suffice. Talk to the insurance clerk at your doctor's office.

Medicare Part D
All very true, Phoenix, but if he can't reach anyone at AARP the fact that the burden is on him is a problem. He can't spend a couple of hours on the phone just hoping to reach someone, and quite often anyway, the phone menu says "please call back later".

I've checked with our doctor's office, and they have no idea how to reach AARP either.

With me the medication in question is to control migraines, but migraines at least aren't life-threatening - just quality-of-life-threatening. What about people who are in a more serious situation?

Tomkitten- I can certainly understand your frustration. The reality is that the drug programs are overwhelmed right now. I have gotten a letter from AARP confirming my mother's coverage, with her policy number, but have yet to get her card.

I know that AARP has extended phone hours now. Why don't you try them between 7-9 AM EST? You might have a better shot then.

HA!

I've tried them at every conceivable time from 8:30 a.m. to 10:45 p.m. I've tried them on Sundays and Saturdays, and weekdays and holidays, and I'm in a daze.