Majority of Medicare beneficiaries satisfied with prescription drug plans

Three-fourths of Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in the prescription drug benefit are satisfied with their plans, according to a recent Wall Street Journal Online/Harris Interactive poll, Wall Street Journal Online reports.

The poll, conducted between Oct. 27 and Oct. 31, included responses from 2,766 U.S. adults, 177 of whom were Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in the prescription drug benefit. Among Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in the prescription drug benefit, 70% said that their prescription drug plans have reduced their medication costs. In addition, 82% of those respondents said that their prescription drug plans were not difficult to use, the poll found. Half of those respondents said that their prescription plans provided them with information to help reduce their medication costs, according to the poll. In addition, 73% of those respondents said that they likely will remain in the same prescription drug plans next year and 12% said that they likely will switch plans, the poll found. Among all respondents, 30% said that they agreed with enactment of the 2003 Medicare law, compared with 18% who disapproved and 53% who remain uncertain, the poll found (Bright, Wall Street Journal Online, 11/7).

Additional Coverage
Two newspapers recently examined issues related to the Medicare prescription drug benefit. Summaries appear below.

• Medicare Advantage plans: The Dallas Morning News on Monday examined the increased popularity of MA plans, private plans that offer traditional benefits, prescription drug coverage and, in some cases, other benefits, such as dental and vision care. According to the Morning News, many MA private fee-for-service plans "offer the same broad access to doctors and hospitals that beneficiaries enjoy in traditional Medicare," and such plans often have lower premiums than traditional Medicare. However, beneficiaries who have high medical expenses might pay more under these plans than under traditional Medicare. Enrollment in MA plans has increased by 27% in the past year, and the Bush administration expects 30% of Medicare beneficiaries to enroll in such plans by 2013 (Moos, Dallas Morning News, 11/6).
• Medicare prescription drug plan enrollment: The New York Times on Tuesday examined options for Medicare beneficiaries who enroll in the prescription drug benefit for the 2007 plan year. The enrollment period begins on Nov. 15. According to the Times, Medicare beneficiaries should "take a second look" at available prescription drug plans, regardless of their current medication coverage. Beneficiaries who currently have no prescription drug coverage should use the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder on the Medicare Web site. Medicare beneficiaries should consider the premiums, deductibles and copayments for the medications that they take, and the "kinds of restrictions that may be placed" on those treatments, according to the Times. In addition, Medicare beneficiaries should "double check with the plan itself" to ensure that the information on the Web site included no errors, the Times reports. Medicare beneficiaries currently enrolled in prescription drug plans should review their coverage to determine whether the formularies or premiums of their plans have changed (Brody, New York Times, 11/7).

Rx Drug Plan Marketing
Summaries of two recent developments related to health insurers and Medicare prescription drug plans appear below.

• Marketing campaigns: Hundreds of health insurers nationwide "are pouring money and imagination into selling" Medicare drug plans, the Detroit News reports. Enrollment in Medicare drug plans for 2007 begins on Nov. 15, and CMS allowed health insurers to begin marketing prescription drug plans this month. According to the Detroit News, health insurers are "holding catchy promotions, hiring celebrity spokespeople and deploying friendly sales reps to places ... where seniors shop." Health insurers maintain that marketing campaigns for drug plans help educate beneficiaries about which plans to select. Scott Latimer, Humana market president for central and northern Florida, said, "Often, we're not doing selling, but we're doing basic education. There's still confusion out there." Deane Beebe, spokesperson for the New York-based Medicare Rights Center, said, "Clearly this is good business for the insurance industry. We're always concerned about marketing. Companies always advertise the plusses and don't let them know some of the concerns." Experts expect health insurers this year to spend more than $80 million on marketing campaigns for Medicare drug plans (Terlep, Detroit News, 11/4).
• UnitedHealth Group: UnitedHealth officials on Friday announced that the company will offer SecureHorizons Medicare Advantage and prescription drug plans in more than 700 Wal-Mart stores in 30 states, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports. A decision by Humana officials to reduce the number of Wal-Mart stores in which the company offers Medicare plans allowed UnitedHealth to make the move. Under an agreement between Humana and Wal-Mart, Wal-Mart can allow other health insurers to offer Medicare plans in stores in which Humana does not offer plans (Howington, Louisville Courier-Journal, 11/3).