How Medicare Part D Can Save You Money on Prescription Drugs

Erin Corine Johnson et al. sitting posing for the camera

If you have a Medicare plan, it is important to consider Medicare Part D. Medicare Part D is an optional coverage that you can add to your Medicare plan to cover expenses not covered by a basic plan.

What is Part D Medicare Insurance?

Original Medicare contains two elements—Part A & Part B coverage. Part A will pay for hospital stays, surgeries and similar costs. Part B covers services like doctors’ visits and outpatient care. However, Original coverage will only cover drug treatments in very limited capacities. To have coverage for your standard prescription needs, you’ll likely need Part D coverage.

Medicare Part D is optional, supplementary insurance. Those with Original Medicare can add coverage alongside their existing plan. It will cover some or all the costs of multitudes of prescription drugs.

The Costs of Part D Coverage

Medicare Part D is not a single plan. Different plans exist in different areas. You’ll have options when selecting coverage. You’ll have to compare plans to determine the one with the correct costs to you. What are some of these?

Premiums: You will pay a cost for the Part D plan itself. You will pay this cost in addition to your Original Medicare premium.
Deductibles: Some Part D plans include a deductible. Deductibles ranges between $0 and $415 (the highest allowed in 2019). You’ll pay the cost of the deductible before your plan will cover the rest of your prescription costs. However, some plans will not carry a deductible at all.

Coinsurance/copayments: This is the most common cost Part D plan holders will pay. You will generally pay a small percentage of the total cost for your prescription, or simply pay a set cost (like $5, $10, $15 and so on).

All Medicare Part D plans will contain formularies that list the types of drugs the plans cover. The formulary will usually divide the drugs into different tiers. It is this tier that will influence the copayment or coinsurance you will pay for your coverage.

The tiers a drug enters will depend on things like:

Whether the drug is name-brand or generic
The drug’s effectiveness

The condition the drug treats

You can usually find a plan covering your preferred drugs at a cost that works for you. Speak with your insurance agent about covering your prescription drug costs with Medicare Plan D.

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