The Department of Health and Human Services has reported that nearly 48,000 Medicare enrollees have saved $38 million this year – an average of $800 per person – under a 50 percent discount created by the Affordable Care Act.
According to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the discount is provided on covered brand-name drugs to beneficiaries who reach the so-called "doughnut hole"– the payment gap in Medicare Part D benefits.
Sebelius also reported that nearly 4 million Medicare Part D beneficiaries received a one-time, tax-free $250 rebate check, provided under the ACA, as a coverage gap payment in 2010.
The announcement comes one day after the one-year anniversary of the passage of the ACA.
Sebelius announced that a similar number of Medicare beneficiaries are likely to enter the coverage gap in 2011 and will benefit from additional ACA provisions that work to close the doughnut hole by 2020.
"For too long, many seniors and people with disabilities have struggled to choose between paying for needed prescription medication and other necessities, like food, rent and utilities," Sebelius said. "The Affordable Care Act is delivering more affordable prescription drugs to seniors and giving everyone on Medicare better benefits."
For the 11,000 beneficiaries with the highest out-of-pocket costs, savings have averaged $1,775, according to Sebelius. The five states with the largest number of individuals who received a rebate check are California, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania and Texas, she said. Millions more beneficiaries are expected to receive the discount over the course of the year. In addition, this year, Medicare began shrinking the doughnut hole by increasing coverage for generic drugs, she added.
"The closing of the doughnut hole is just one of the ways seniors will benefit from the Affordable Care Act," said Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Donald M. Berwick, MD. "Adding even greater value to their savings on prescription drugs, the new healthcare law gives people with Medicare new benefits as soon as they visit their doctors this year."
The information on Part D savings is found in a new report issued Tuesday by the HHS.
[See related stories: OIG questions use of Part D rebates for drug companies; CVS Caremark to purchase Universal American's Part D business.]