A new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that most Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit enrollees did not choose one of the lowest-cost drug plans offered in their area in 2006. Using actual pharmacy claims experiences, and premium and cost-sharing information about Medicare prescription drug plans, the study looked at whether seniors chose the lowest-cost plan for them, based on their drug claims for 2005.
The study found that only 6 percent of seniors chose the lowest-cost plan offered in their area in 2006, and that enrollees who did not choose the lowest-cost plan would have saved $520 on average in 2006 if they had done so. Only 10 percent chose one of the five percent of plans that would have resulted in the lowest costs.
Written by Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist Jonathan Gruber for the Kaiser Family Foundation, the analysis examined retail pharmacy claims from 2005 and 2006 for Part D enrollees ages 65 and older.
Read the report.
