To say that Medicare Part D is federal subsidy would be correct. After all, Medicare Part D was created to subsidize prescription drug costs of Medicare recipients in the United States. It is a federal program.

Medicare Part D was formed when the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 took effect in January 2006. The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) influenced congress to enact the law.

Medicare Part D is simply an appendage of the so-called original Medicare program, which is composed of Part A for hospitalization and Part B for outpatient services. Private insurance plan providers administer the Medicare Part D benefit, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services or CMS just reimburses them for the cost.

Since it took effect in 2006, only a fraction (661,000 in 2007) of the seven million people who are eligible for Medicare Part D, actually took out a coverage plan. The tepid reception can, in part, be attributed to the fact that, although there are many Part D plans, there is no standard industry-wide formulary, or list of generic and brand name drugs. Sure, there is a baseline list of excluded drugs: barbiturates, benzodiazepines, and cough suppressants but everything else, your prescription drugs might be covered in one Part D plan and be totally excluded in another. But there is reason to believe that this situation will change in the future, at least that’s what many sales persons in the industry are hoping for.
 
And every year too, formularies change across companies that provide Part D coverage, so you need to keep yourself informed every year if you want to squeeze the most out of your money. Information on Part D plans for the next year can be obtained on October 1 of the current year. The election period of a new Part D plan is from November 15, 2008 to December 31, 2008.

In choosing a Medicare Part D plan, there are some things you need to consider, including the ratings of a plan provider, which indicates its financial strength and stability. Then you also need to consider a Medicare Part D plan’s formulary or list of covered generic and brand name drugs.

As the year 2009 approaches, the standard benefits of all Medicare Part D plans for 2009 also change. The annual deductible will be at $295. The maximum amount of out of pocket expenses for the year would be $4,350. The co-payment amount for generic drugs would be at $2.40 while the co-payment of the branded drugs would, on the other hand, would be at $6.00

Now if you’re quite happy with your own Medicare Part D plan, you really are not required to elect a new plan. You can just renew your enrolment under a plan. But do keep in mind that your current plan’s current features might change for the next year. It certainly would help if you keep track of the changes. Since there can be as many 100 Medicare Part D plans in your area alone, prepare to do the paper work.