2011: High-income Medicare beneficiaries must start paying higher Part D premiums in addition to Part B.
2018: All enrollees will begin receiving new Medicare cards. Each contains a unique 11-digit combination of numbers and letters rather than a Social Security number that helps fight identity theft and Medicare fraud. Every Medicare beneficiary will receive a new card between April 2018 and April 2019.
2019: A Medicare Advantage Plan can provide additional health-related benefits, such as transportation to doctor visits and over-the-counter medications, to members with chronic conditions. In 2020, it will be able to start paying non-medical benefits for people with chronic conditions, such as meal delivery, home modifications such as wheelchair ramps, and transportation to the grocery store.
2020: The donut hole in part D closes. When Part D prescription drug coverage was introduced, a participant would pay out-of-pocket his 100% of drug costs after annual spending reached a certain amount and before that spending reached catastrophic coverage levels. I had to. This coverage gap began to narrow gradually from 2011, by 2019 for branded medicines and by 2020 for generic medicines. Currently, Part D beneficiaries will not pay 25% of prescription drug costs until they reach a catastrophic coverage level of no more than 5% of drug costs.
2022: On August 16, President Joe Biden signed into law the Control Inflation Act, which adds several significant enhancements to Medicare’s prescription drug coverage and allows Medicare to negotiate prices with pharmaceutical companies for some medicines. and imposing penalties if pharmaceutical companies raise prices above the standard. Inflation, making certain vaccines free to registrants, limiting copayments for prescription drugs, and other major changes. This provision will be in effect for the next few years.
2023: Two key parts of the Control Inflation Act will come into force. Vaccines recommended for adults by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), including the shingles vaccine, are now available free to Medicare beneficiaries. Starting January 1st, your covered insulin copay for Part D plans will be capped at $35 per month. The $35 out-of-pocket limit for pump-delivered insulin under Part B will go into effect on July 1.
2024: Three more parts of the Control Inflation Act will come into force. The government will expand coverage of the Supplemental Assistance Program to help low-income individuals pay their Part D premiums and co-payments. If you’re on a Part D plan and your drug costs are so high that your insurance coverage hits a catastrophic stage, you won’t have any more out-of-pocket costs for the rest of the year. Also, from 2024, he will not be able to increase premiums by more than 6% annually under Part D plans until 2029.
2025: The maximum out-of-pocket cost for eligible prescription drugs for Part D or Medicare Advantage Plan members is $2,000. Part D members can spread out their co-payment payments over the course of the year, avoiding high monthly drug bills.
2026: Part D price negotiations begin. Negotiated prices for up to 10 drugs will come into effect in 2026. After that, more drugs will be added to the negotiation process. Up to 15 drugs will be added to the negotiation process in 2027 and 2028, and up to 20 drugs after 2029. Price negotiations for Medicare Part B drugs typically administered in hospitals and clinics will go into effect in 2028.
Melissa Stanton, Senior Advisor and Editor of the AARP Livable Communities Initiative, contributed to this article.
