Seniors search for best drug coverage

Dorothy Geathers' Medicare plan already costs nearly $200 a month without drug coverage, so she won't consider any other changes for fear of higher costs.

But with Medicare offering open enrollment for its prescription-drug coverage beginning next month, county officials are trying to help residents like Geathers select the best plan for them.

As it is, the 65-year-old Odenton resident buys $140 worth of medicine each month, in addition to the $195 for her medical coverage.

"That's a lot," said Geathers, among the roughly 45 seniors who gathered at the O'Malley Senior Activity Center yesterday to hear a presentation on Medicare. "That's why I'm still working. I wish I could stay home."

The open enrollment option for Medicare Part D, or prescription drug coverage, begins Nov. 15 and lasts through the end of the year.

On Nov. 1, the county Department of Aging and Disabilities will open its annual Medicare Open Enrollment Center to help seniors select a Part D drug plan. Officials have presented seminars about Medicare at senior centers across the county, and two more are scheduled next week for Annapolis and Edgewater.

In addition to the seminars, counselors from the Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program, or SHIP, are available by appointment at all county senior activity centers.

"Medicare is insurance and we want seniors to understand their options with Medicare," said Amy Rubino, SHIP director. "Now is the time to look at these options."

There are four Medicare plans - A, B, C and D - that provide different levels of coverage.

The Part D option covers prescription-drug costs up to $2,700 a year. Once that cost is reached, participants may have to pay the full price of their medicine through the end of the year.

But the state's Prescription Drug Assistance Program subsidizes those costs for low-income seniors and the disabled for a premium that can cost up to $111 a month, officials said.

Medigap offers 12 plans, from A through L, that are designed to supplement original Medicare plans. Generally, Medigap plans C and F offer the best options, but they tend to be the costliest, averaging about $175 a month, Rubino said.

When it comes to choosing a plan, Rubino advised seniors to go through each summary and highlight any issue that related to billing costs, so they'd be aware of their financial responsibilities.

"The golden rule is that health-insurance premiums always go up," Rubino told the group. "Many times we'll get calls from someone later in life and their premiums are (more expensive) than they can handle … There is no worse shock than when someone goes to see (a doctor) and finds out that their Medicare plan was not going to pay that provider."

Gambrills resident Queen Young said she was concerned about Medicare being her primary care, even though she pays a higher premium to Kaiser Permanente. Still, she said she was pleased she didn't have any serious illnesses that required expensive prescriptions.

"I'm not on any medication that costs money," said Young, 72. "Where the money is, it's with heart medicine and diabetes. Then I'd be concerned about Part D. My medicine costs me $5."

Hanover resident Kathryn Wehrman was in a similar situation.

"I'm not on any medicine at all, but I'm 75, so you've got to expect anything," Wehrman said. "I'm grateful there is a plan for us seniors. I don't know what the future holds, but I'm grateful for what's been established for us."

MEDICARE ENROLLMENT

The county Department of Aging and Disabilities will open its annual Medicare Open Enrollment Center on Nov. 1.

To make an appointment, call 410-222-4464, ext. 3080.

Medicare educational seminars are being held at:
• 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Annapolis Senior Activity Center, 119 S. Villa Ave., Annapolis.
• 10 a.m. Thursday at the South County Senior Activity Center, 27 Stepneys Lane, Edgewater.