Colorado senior citizens – starting Tuesday – can choose among 17 private companies and several HMOs for coverage under the new Medicare prescription drug benefit program.
The question is how many of the state’s nearly half-million elderly will actually try to deal with the complex federal drug plan, which takes effect Jan. 1.
“Our first bit of advice is: Don’t panic,” said Morie Pierce, a spokeswoman for AARP, the country’s largest senior citizens organization. “Realize that you don’t have to do anything on the 15th.”
The monthly premiums for the Colorado programs range from $8.62 to $65.88. The health maintenance organizations are offering the prescription benefit as part of a broader package.
What is covered under the different plans varies widely and is causing confusion, health officials and senior-citizen advocates say.
For example, not all plans cover every drug. Some plans require patients to try a generic drug before allowing a brand-name prescription, and others limit the amount of certain drugs they will pay for.
The least expensive plans may not turn out to be the best bargains, so seniors need to read the fine print, advised Eileen Doherty, president of the Colorado Gerontological Society.
Seniors can begin narrowing their options by choosing a pharmacy they want to use, then making a list of the drugs they take and matching those against what the plans offer, she said.
The group with the toughest decision to make is healthy seniors who don’t take any medications, said Jim Swayze, vice president and general manager for Rocky Mountain Health Plans.
They may want to avoid the extra cost of the program – called Part D – but could end up paying far more when they need drugs in the future, he said.
After May 15, Medicare beneficiaries will have to pay a 1 percent premium increase for every month they wait to sign up, and they’ll pay that higher price for as long as they are in the plan.
“I think with the penalty kicking in, that will entice a number of seniors to enroll,” Swayze said.
To help those still unclear on how to proceed, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will host information sessions for Colorado’s 498,000 elderly and disabled Medicare members.
“We are working with numerous community-based organizations in Colorado,” said Dr. Mark McClellan, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services administrator.
About two-thirds of Colorado seniors already have drug coverage through employee retirement benefits or a Medicare HMO.
The government on Tuesday will automatically enroll low- income Medicare members, who also receive Medicaid benefits, in a drug plan. HMO members will be enrolled in their current plan unless they opt out, Doherty said.
Staff writer Marsha Austin can be reached at 303-820-1242 or maustin@denverpost.com.
Sessions today offer help for deciding
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will host a series of statewide information sessions for Colorado’s 498,000 elderly and disabled Medicare members. The sessions are from 9 to 11 a.m. at these sites:
Heritage Club, 2020 S. Monroe St., Denver.
The Gardens at St. Elizabeth, 2835 W. 32nd Ave., Denver.
St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church, 5555 S. Yosemite St., Greenwood Village.
Northglenn Senior Center, 11801 Community Center Drive.
Frasier Meadows, 350 Ponca Place, Boulder.
Greeley Senior Activity Center, 1010 Sixth St.
A session from 1 to 3 p.m. will be held at the College View Recreation Center, 2525 S. Decatur St., Denver.
