What You Need To Know About Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage

Medicare prescription drug coverage is available in two forms. However, in order to get Medicare drug coverage, individuals must be eligible or enrolled in Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B, which covers hospital and medical care, such as doctors’ visits and necessary tests.

Medicare drug plans are available in programs such as Medicare advantage. Those programs allow Medicare recipients to take advantage of additional coverage options, such as dental care and prescription drug coverage. Individuals must pay an addition fee for the program and the cost will depend on the type of coverage selected. In some cases, individuals will find that the program covers their co-payments, as well as deductibles which they would be responsible for in the traditional Medicare program.

Medicare drug plans which are purchased as part of Medicare advantage plan may still incur a co-payment for prescriptions. There will likely be a list of covered medications, including the cost of the co-payment for each medication. In general, Medicare drug coverage includes free or very inexpensive generic drugs, with some brands names incurring a large co-payment.

Those that select Medicare prescription drug coverage separate from a Medicare advantage plan will likely find similar payment plans. However, they may have higher co-payments, as this program does not generally assist in paying deductibles and co-payments for the Medicare recipient.

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