No limit: Medicare Part D enrollees exposed to high out-of-pocket drug costs without a hard cap on spending

No limit: Medicare Part D enrollees exposed to high out-of-pocket drug costs without a hard cap on spending

Collection:
Health Policy and Services Research
Series Title(s):
Issue brief (Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation)
Author(s):
Cubanski, Juliette, author
Neuman, Tricia, author
Orgera, Kendal, author
Damico, Anthony, author
Contributor(s):
Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, issuing body.
Publication:
Menlo Park, CA : Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, November 2017
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Drug Costs
Financing, Personal
Health Expenditures
Medicare Part D -- economics
Medicare Part D -- trends
United States
Genre(s):
Technical Report
Abstract:
Since 2006, the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit has helped improve the affordability of medications for people with Medicare. Yet even with Part D, enrollees can face relatively high out-of-pocket costs because there is no hard cap on out-of-pocket spending under Part D. Enrollees are required to pay up to 5 percent of their drug costs above the catastrophic coverage threshold, unless they receive low-income subsidies that help pay Part D premiums and cost sharing. For high-priced medications, this relatively small coinsurance rate can translate into significant out-of-pocket costs. This analysis examines out-of-pocket prescription drug spending among Medicare Part D enrollees with costs above the catastrophic coverage threshold.
Copyright:
Reproduced with permission of the copyright holder. Further use of the material is subject to CC BY license. (More information)
Extent:
1 online resource (1 PDF file (13 pages))
Illustrations:
Illustrations
NLM Unique ID:
101717331 (See catalog record)
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/101717331