With the Medicare open enrollment interval set to start October 15, a brand new KFF evaluation finds that 7 in 10 beneficiaries (71%) say that they didn’t evaluate their protection choices throughout a current open enrollment season. Twenty-nine p.c mentioned they did evaluate Medicare plans.
However not purchasing round can have a big effect on enrollees’ protection and prices. The Facilities for Medicare & Medicaid Companies (CMS) recommends that beneficiaries evaluation and evaluate Medicare plans every year.
The brand new evaluation examines the share of Medicare beneficiaries who in contrast plans through the 2018 open enrollment interval for protection in 2019, the share who in contrast drug protection in Medicare Benefit and stand-alone drug plans, and variation by demographic traits, based mostly on an evaluation of the 2019 Medicare Present Beneficiary Survey (the newest yr out there).
Different key findings embrace:
• The share of beneficiaries who mentioned they didn’t evaluate their choices was larger amongst beneficiaries who’re Black (74%) and Hispanic (79%), ages 85 and older (84%), with low incomes (85%), and people enrolled in each Medicare and Medicaid (87%).
• On the subject of Half D drug protection, 81 p.c of Medicare Benefit drug plan enrollees and 72 p.c of Medicare stand-alone drug plan enrollees mentioned they didn’t evaluate drug protection supplied by their present plan to different plans.
• Practically half (47%) of all beneficiaries with Medicare mentioned that they had by no means visited the official Medicare web site for data, 53 p.c reported that they had by no means known as the 1-800-MEDICARE helpline and 31 p.c mentioned they didn’t learn the Medicare & You handbook.
Medicare beneficiaries with conventional Medicare can evaluate and swap Medicare Half D stand-alone prescription drug plans or be part of a Medicare Benefit plan, the privately run various to conventional Medicare. On the identical time, enrollees in Medicare Benefit can evaluate and swap Medicare Benefit plans or elect protection beneath conventional Medicare with or with no stand-alone drug plan.
Protection and prices range extensively amongst each Medicare Benefit plans and Half D prescription drug plans. Plans can change from one yr to the following, as can beneficiaries’ well being care wants, which may result in sudden and avoidable prices, and disruptions in take care of beneficiaries who keep put and don’t at the very least evaluation their choices yearly.
For different Medicare-related information and analyses, together with our Medicare Open Enrollment FAQs and our up to date Overview of the Medicare Half D Prescription Drug Profit, go to kff.org. The Medicare open enrollment interval runs by December 7.