During the next six months, Medicare recipients will need to enroll in one of the new prescription drug coverage plans. But with the deluge of information about Medicare Part D, some reliable and some not, “seniors find themselves in an environment of fear and confusion,” says Edward F. Lawlor, Ph.D., a Medicare expert and dean of the School of Social Work at Washington University in St. Louis.
“There is so much noise about the prescription drug program, but people are not getting clear, simple information. Many seniors aren’t even entertaining making the proper plan choice.”
Medicare Part D will provide a number of options for seniors. “Obviously it will offer new prescription drug choices and pay for drugs in new, enhanced ways, but more importantly, it will be the basis for a set of health care conversations with loved ones and enable people to learn about Medicare more broadly so they can use the program as effectively as possible,” says Lawlor, a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance.
Looking for ‘Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval’
While the prescription drug plan has its benefits, the enrollment process is creating a set of difficulties because there is confusion about Part D’s specifics and its eligibility guidelines.
“Seniors are recovering from the discount card experience and are now trying to understand the deadlines and requirements that they face with this new coverage,” he says.
“I’m convinced, and partly from personal experience with my mother, that seniors need to have a resource that they think is credible. My mother lives with a group of other seniors and they’re all frightened about the program. They’re looking for the ‘Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval’ from a respected, accessible source of information that’s going to allow them to make these decisions.”
Lawlor recommends taking advantage of programs like My Medicare Matters (MMM) sponsored by the National Council on Aging and the Access to Benefits Coalition. MMM is a national education program that uses a fleet of mobile education vans to bring individualized, personal attention and guidance to seniors as they learn about the new coverage and their options.
“Personalized education programs like MMM are important for seniors because they allow for a fair amount of conversation back and forth with people who have the right information as well as people who can be supportive of seniors’ decisionmaking,” he says. “One of the things that’s been missing in Medicare is good translation — translation of the complexities of the program for seniors who have to make these important decisions.”
Lawlor hopes that this Part D experience prompts a broader discussion about Medicare.
“One of the things that is so difficult about Medicare is its complexity,” he says. “Medicare released a book, Medicare Made Easy, and it’s 331 pages. Even experts have a hard time understanding the complexities and nuances of the program. Hopefully the prescription drug plan process will start a longer conversation with Medicare to help people understand the program as a whole, use it better, and not be frightened by the policy changes that are going to happen.”