Medicare Part D covers a portion of your prescription drug costs.
Since many other parts of Medicare (Part A, B and C) do not offer great coverage for prescription drugs, Part D has become a popular option for seniors. Below we take a look at the costs, deductibles and more for Medicare Part D.
How Much Does Medicare Part D Cost?
The current average monthly premium for Medicare Part D is about $33. This rate will vary depending on the plan you choose and what state you live in.
How Much Are Deductibles Under Medicare Part D?
Part D deductible plans range from $0 to $415. Do your homework to factor yearly costs with the drugs that you will need to take before selecting your premium plan.
How Much Are Copayments and Coinsurance?
A coinsurance is a percentage of the price of your prescription. A copayment is a fixed dollar amount for your prescription.
You will typically have to pay coinsurance on drugs in higher tiers, with lower tier drugs sticking with a copay pricing model.
Keep in mind, drug pricing will be designed to encourage you to select lower cost drugs.
Will Medicare Part D Stop Paying For My Drug Costs?
Unfortunately, yes. Called the coverage gap or donut hole, you will be responsible for 25% of all your drug costs when you reach a limit of about $4,000 in yearly drug costs.
However, once you’ve paid over $6,350 for out-of-pocket drugs costs, you leave the gap/donut hole coverage and enter catastrophic coverage.
During this period you will pay significantly lower copayments or coinsurance costs.
That’s the basics on how much does Medicare Part D cost. Check out more info on Medicare costs here…
More on Medicare Costs
This is part of our ongoing series: How much does Medicare cost?
Read the next article in the series: How much does Medicare Part C cost?