Medicare patients and the physicians who care for them now have more information to guide their choice of plan in 2024.
Amid open enrollment, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently released its annual star ratings for Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans.
Medicare patients can access the star ratings and other plan information – including cost and coverage –using the Medicare Plan Finder tool on the Medicare website.
Nearly three in four patients enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan that offers prescription drug coverage are enrolled in a plan that earned at least four stars, according to the federal agency.
CMS also touted the prescription drug benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law on Aug. 16.
The law established for Part D patients a $35 cost-sharing limit on a month’s supply of each covered insulin product, and expanded the Low-Income Subsidy Program, which helps eligible enrollees afford their premiums and other plan costs.
In addition, the average monthly premium for Part D coverage is expected to be $55.50 in 2024, down 1.8% from 2023 rates, according to the federal agency.
“As Medicare Open Enrollment approaches, many people with Medicare can expect to see improved benefits and lower prescription drug costs because of the historic Inflation Reduction Act,” CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said in an Oct. 13 statement.
Medicare open enrollment began Oct. 15 and ends Dec. 7, with coverage changes taking effect Jan. 1, 2024.
Last Updated On
November 13, 2023
Originally Published On
November 10, 2023
Emma Freer
Associate Editor
(512) 370-1383