Medicare Prescription Drug Plan is Working for Seniors
WASHINGTON, Dec. 22 /PRNewswire/ — Karen Ignagni, President and CEO of America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), made the following statement on today’s announcement by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) of the preliminary enrollment in the new Medicare prescription drug benefit.
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“Today’s announcement means that as the prescription drug program begins, almost half of eligible Medicare beneficiaries are covered. Moreover, seniors are sending a strong message that the program works.”
Ignagni cited the first national survey of seniors who have enrolled in the Medicare drug benefit as the latest evidence that seniors are embracing the new program.
“The vast majority of Medicare drug enrollees believe their new benefits are worth the effort of evaluating the drug plan choices available to them. By an overwhelming margin, Medicare drug enrollees would recommend that other seniors sign up for the benefit.”
Results from a survey conducted by Ayres, McHenry & Associates on behalf of AHIP:
* By a 57 to 16 percent margin, enrolled seniors say their new benefits are worth the time and effort they spent evaluating the various drug plans. * By a six-to-one margin (56 to 9 percent), enrolled seniors say they would recommend that other seniors sign up for the program. * Fifty-one percent of enrollees say their new plan will yield immediate savings versus 28 percent who say it will not. * Among the 36 percent of enrolled seniors who currently spend more than $100 per month on prescription drugs, 68 percent say their new plan will save them money, and 15 percent say it will not. * More than four-fifths of enrollees say that their new Medicare drug plan covers the drugs they need.
The survey was conducted by Ayres, McHenry & Associates from December 15- 19, 2005. The sample was drawn from a list targeting all adults age 65 or older. Respondents confirmed their age and were asked if they had enrolled in the new benefit. Results are based on the views of 401 seniors who said they have signed up for the benefit, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.89 percent.
America’s Health Insurance Plans —
Providing Health Benefits to More Than 200 Million Americans
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America’s Health Insurance Plans
CONTACT: Mohit Ghose of America’s Health Insurance Plans,+1-202-778-8494
Web site: http://www.ahip.org/