Meidcare Part D

• Medicare Part D is also known as Medicare prescription drug coverage. Medicare Part D is drug-coverage insurance that provides beneficiaries assistance in purchasing both generic and name-brand drugs. Medicare Part D is not offered within the traditional Medicare program. A person must enroll in one of the numerous Medicare Part D drug insurance plans offered.
  
  

Medicare Part D Eligibility

• The time in which a person becomes eligible to sign up for Medicare Part D is typically three months before he turns 65, or three months after he turns 65. Someone who receives Medicare due to disability can sign up for Medicare Part D three months before or after he receives 25 monthly cash disability payments. However, those people who do not sign up for Medicare Part D when they first become eligible may have to pay a penalty fee.
  
  

Costs

• When a person enrolls in the Medicare Part D Prescription plan, the plan provider typically charges a monthly premium. The amount of the monthly premium varies in each state, but the cost on average is $24.40. In addition to a monthly premium, plan providers also require patients to pay a yearly deductible. The deductible cost varies, depending on the plan provider, but the standard deductible amount for 2008 was $275. The plan covers part of the cost of the prescription, and the patient pays the remaining costs. The patient's share may be a co-pay or flat fee, or a percentage of the cost of the drug.
  
  

Medicare Part D Misconception

• Those who are in good health, or do not use prescription drugs on a regular basis are under the misconception that Medicare Part D is not a good program to join. This is not true. As a person ages, his body may require him to use more prescription drugs. Without having Medicare Part D drug insurance, this can be costly in the future. Having the drug insurance protects a person on future prescription drug bills that can be unexpected, and costly.
  
  

Approved Prescription Drugs

• When enrolling in Medicare Part D, a person should take into consideration the type of drugs the program covers. Part D plans require the prescription drugs to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration. However, the Medicare plan a person chooses is not required to pay for all Part D prescription drugs. A Part D insurance provider may establish their own lists of the drugs they will cover.