Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Medicare Part D by the numbers
Kaiser has released their report examining the number of beneficiaries enrolled so far in Medicare Part D.
Health and Human Services (HHS) has set a goal of 29.3 million enrollees in 2006. As of January 13, 14.3 million beneficiaries have enrolled in Medicare Part D plans. At first glance, that number appears to be 50% of the goal, so things must be on schedule, right?
Wrong. Dual eligibles, or people enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid, were automatically assigned to a plan. As there are 6.2 million dual eligibles, that automatically enrolled number is almost half of everyone that's signed up thus far. And, it's important to note, those dual eligibles were already getting their medications through Medicaid.
Then there are the Medicare Advantage enrollees. Medicare Advantage acts as HMO-style coverage for Medicare, and with the passage of Part D, many of these Advantage plans added drug coverage. The process for signing up for a Medicare Advantage Part D plan is much simpler than choosing from the larger pool of Part D plans. So far, 4.5 million Medicare Advantage enrollees have signed up.
That leaves only 3.6 million people (out of the 14.3 cited by HHS) who have signed up for stand-alone Medicare Part D plans. Only 25% of those enrolled so far went through the debacle-style enrollment process .
HHS needs an additional 15 million beneficiaries to enroll by the end of the year to meet its goal. With all the dual eligibles (read: automatic) already signed up, that 15 million must comprise only Medicare Advantage and standard Medicare enrollees. In 2005 only 12% of Medicare enrollees had Medicare Advantage Plans. That means the vast majority of the 15 million people who still need to sign up in 2006 will have to go through stand-alone Medicare Part D Plans.
To meet HHS' goal, more than 10 million will have to overcome the "choice," confusion and frustration to participate in the drug benefit. The program needs these people to sign up to ensure its long-term viability and to keep premiums from soaring. So, while states have come to rescue providing temporary coverage and reimbursement, there's been no fix to make it easier for 15 million more people to sign up. There's still room for an ingenious lawmaker to come up with that.
Health and Human Services (HHS) has set a goal of 29.3 million enrollees in 2006. As of January 13, 14.3 million beneficiaries have enrolled in Medicare Part D plans. At first glance, that number appears to be 50% of the goal, so things must be on schedule, right?
Wrong. Dual eligibles, or people enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid, were automatically assigned to a plan. As there are 6.2 million dual eligibles, that automatically enrolled number is almost half of everyone that's signed up thus far. And, it's important to note, those dual eligibles were already getting their medications through Medicaid.
Then there are the Medicare Advantage enrollees. Medicare Advantage acts as HMO-style coverage for Medicare, and with the passage of Part D, many of these Advantage plans added drug coverage. The process for signing up for a Medicare Advantage Part D plan is much simpler than choosing from the larger pool of Part D plans. So far, 4.5 million Medicare Advantage enrollees have signed up.
That leaves only 3.6 million people (out of the 14.3 cited by HHS) who have signed up for stand-alone Medicare Part D plans. Only 25% of those enrolled so far went through the debacle-style enrollment process .
HHS needs an additional 15 million beneficiaries to enroll by the end of the year to meet its goal. With all the dual eligibles (read: automatic) already signed up, that 15 million must comprise only Medicare Advantage and standard Medicare enrollees. In 2005 only 12% of Medicare enrollees had Medicare Advantage Plans. That means the vast majority of the 15 million people who still need to sign up in 2006 will have to go through stand-alone Medicare Part D Plans.
To meet HHS' goal, more than 10 million will have to overcome the "choice," confusion and frustration to participate in the drug benefit. The program needs these people to sign up to ensure its long-term viability and to keep premiums from soaring. So, while states have come to rescue providing temporary coverage and reimbursement, there's been no fix to make it easier for 15 million more people to sign up. There's still room for an ingenious lawmaker to come up with that.
