Study: Drug Insurance Reduces the Cost of Other Therapies
Results indicate that obtaining prescription drug insurance through Medicare Part D was associated with an 8% decrease in the number of hospital admissions, a 7% decrease in Medicare expenditures, and a 12% decrease in total resource use. Gaining prescription drug insurance through Medicare Part D was not significantly associated with mortality. (NBER)
Since most people are familiar with their health condition, maintaining a Part D is economical and efficient.
For those who have a job, they have to know whether or not the employer coverage works with the Medicare drug benefit (it often will not)?
Appendix for last comment:
http://www.medicareinteractive.org/page2.php?topic=counselor&page=script&slide_id=1474
X-Ray, I think the term you are looking for is “Creditable Coverage.” This means that the drug benefit in an employer sponsored plan or individual plan must be actuarially equivalent to that of Part “D” or you may face a “Late Entry Penalty” of 1% per month for each month you do not enroll into Part “D” which is assessed by CMS.
Numerous accounts of quality research show that Medicare Part D is a smashing success of a program. This shows it is more evident that the government shouldn’t change a good thing.
Here’s more about why Medicare Part D shouldn’t be touched:
http://www.ncpathinktank.org/pub/ib140
Part D is a unnecessary program that was created by G. Bush to secure senior votes during a tense election.
These drugs were available under a Medicare Supplement plan. When the Part D mandate was passed the prescription drugs were stripped out of these plans and moved to Part D.
It was a shell game.
Medicare part D is one of the best sections of the healthcare industry in the United States. Since a long time back it was known that prevention was preferred over reaction. Medical prescribed drugs are a mechanism in which patients can prevent a minor disease and control them from developing into a life threatening condition. This program saves millions of lives, the government shouldn’t try to change it.
Not to mention being cost-effective and self sufficient. You don’t get many government programs like that these days.
“Part D drug plans use a variety of techniques to control drug costs, including preferred-drug lists, tiered formularies, use of mail-order drug suppliers, negotiated prices with drug companies and drug distributors, and contracting with exclusive preferred pharmacy network providers.”
That is why Plan D is so successful.
Creditable Coverage.” This means that the drug benefit in an employer sponsored plan or individual plan must be actuarially equivalent to that of Part “D”.
healanyone.com
Wow people are cheap.