[GranniesAgainstGeorge] Fw: A Part D Refund

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" Magginkat " <magginkat

Thu, 24 Aug 2006 18:14:35 -0500

[GranniesAgainstGeorge] Fw: A Part D Refund

 

 

 

Asclepios

 

Your Weekly Medicare Consumer Advocacy Update

 

 

A Part D Refund

 

August 24, 2006 • Volume 6, Issue 34

 

This week the Bush administration erroneously sent checks to about

230,000 people with Medicare to refund what the government thought

were overpaid Part D premiums. Now, the administration is scrambling

to fix its mistake, warning people not to cash the checks.

 

This latest screwup is part of the administration's ongoing efforts,

so far unsuccessful, to reimburse individuals who in fact have

overpaid for Part D—because they are enrolled in two prescription drug

plans, for example, or the Extra Help program is supposed to pay their

premium. Others disenrolled from a plan but are still being charged

the premium.

 

Before anyone cracks wise about government incompetence, consider this:

 

Every month, the Social Security Administration (SSA) deducts the Part

B premium from the Social Security check of nearly 40 million people

with Medicare. The operation runs like clockwork.

 

Part D is a different story. The same two agencies, SSA and the

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, are involved, but there is a

third group of players—the insurance companies running Part D.

 

See the difference?

 

Medicare works. Enrollment is automatic, premiums are uniform and they

go right to the government, a far more efficient payer for health care

services than private insurance companies. Care from a doctor or in a

hospital is readily accessible, and coverage is guaranteed.

 

Part D is a crapshoot. There are nearly 80 companies offering over

1,400 Part D plans, each charging a different premium and each taking

its own cut in profit and administrative overhead. Choosing a plan

involves trade-offs between premiums, deductibles, copayments and what

drugs the plans covers, which can change at any time. Plans then make

their members jump through hoops to get the drugs their doctors have

prescribed. And even then there is no guarantee the plan will cover

these vital medicines.

 

That is not what the American people wanted when they demanded

prescription drug coverage under Medicare.

 

Where's our Part D refund?

 

Medical Record

 

" About 230,000 Medicare recipients are getting checks that erroneously

reimburse them for monthly premiums they have paid for prescription

drug coverage this year. The checks, which are sure to leave many

beneficiaries confused, average about $215. They are accompanied by a

letter that mistakenly tells them the Social Security Administration

will no longer deduct monthly premiums for drug coverage from their

Social Security check. Medicare officials say they caught the glitch

just after checks totaling nearly $50 million were sent out last week.

As a result, they began sending a second letter Tuesday instructing

people not to cash the checks and assuring them that their

prescription drug coverage will continue " ( " Medicare Error Sends

Checks to Thousands , " Associated Press, August 23, 2006).

 

" I am a manager for a senior center. A client came into the center and

told me an odd story. She said that she received extra money on her

Social Security check early this month. A week later, she received a

letter that stated she was due a refund of this amount and that Social

Security would no longer be deducting her Part D premium from her

check. She came to me for help because she thought she had been kicked

out of her plan.

 

" I called Medicare and was told that the Social Security

Administration had sent a letter to Medicare stating that some people

had received a check in error and that they should not cash that check

but should await further instructions. I then called Social Security

and was told that all enrollees would receive any deducted premiums

back and would have to mail in their checks themselves because the

insurance companies thought Social Security was too slow with the

payments. I asked the Social Security representative if people would

be sent letters explaining the situation. The representative said that

it was not up to Social Security, but to the individual insurance

companies " (Story submitted from Franklin, Kentucky, Medicare Rights

Center Part D Monitoring Project, August 22, 2006).

 

" Administrative expenses currently account for less than 2 percent of

Medicare benefit payments, which is significantly lower than the cost

of running private health plans. Between 1975 and 2004, Medicare's

administrative budget declined from 4.9 percent to 1.9 percent of

total benefit spending, despite more complicated reimbursement rules

and more health care service delivery options available to

beneficiaries " ( " Medicare Spending, " Medicare Chartbook, 3rd edition,

Kaiser Family Foundation, Summer 2005).

 

* * * *

 

Fast Relief: Part D Monitoring Project

 

The Medicare Rights Center (MRC) needs to hear about all the problems

with the Medicare Part D benefit, whether they happen to you or

someone in your community. With this information, we will be armed

with the needed evidence to push for a Medicare-administered drug benefit.

 

Submit your story at www.medicarerights.org/partdstories.html

 

* * * *

 

The Louder Our Voice, the Stronger Our Message

 

Asclepios —named for the Greek and Roman god of medicine who,

acclaimed for his healing abilities, was at one point the most

worshipped god in Greece—is a weekly e-newsletter designed to keep you

up-to-date with Medicare program and policy issues, and advance

advocacy strategies to address them. Please help build awareness of

key Medicare consumer issues by forwarding this action alert to your

friends and encouraging them to today.

 

* * * *

 

The Medicare Rights Center (MRC) is the largest independent source of

Medicare information and assistance in the United States. Founded in

1989, MRC helps older adults and people with disabilities get good,

affordable health care.

 

Visit our online subscription form to sign up for Asclepios at

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