WASHINGTON – The federal government has told about 632,000 elderly and disabled people they won’t be automatically enrolled in a Medicare drug plan next year.
These people are still eligible to participate in the drug benefit, but they will have to shop for a plan and then enroll on their own rather than the government doing it for them. To afford the benefit, many will also need to apply for a low-income subsidy.
Some advocates are concerned that many of the 632,000 could fall through the cracks, not knowing they don’t have coverage for their medicine until they show up at their local pharmacy in January.
“We’re very concerned. We believe many, if not most of the people, simply won’t respond to a letter,” said James Firman, president and chief executive of the National Council on Aging. “Many won’t read the letter, they won’t understand the letter, they won’t know how to fill out the application form.”
During the first year of the drug benefit, the so-called “dual eligibles” were automatically enrolled because they participated in Medicaid and Medicare and represented the sickest and most vulnerable among the elderly and disabled. The federal government wanted to ensure that they did not lose access to prescription drugs.
But states have informed the federal government that some of those beneficiaries no longer are enrolled in their Medicaid programs, thus they will no longer be automatically enrolled in a drug plan.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recognizes that some in the group may miss signing up for a drug plan during the next open enrollment period – Nov. 15 though Dec. 31. It has granted the group an extra three months to enroll in a plan without the prospect of a penalty for late enrollment, said Kathleen Harrington, director of external affairs for the agency.
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