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Denver, Colorado
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Denver, Colorado
United States
Seeking Accessible, Affordable and Quality Health CareHelp to Avoid the Doughnut Hole
This year more than 3 million
people with Medicare Part D are expected to fall into the doughnut
hole. This is the gap in coverage when they pay the full cost of their
prescription drugs while still paying premiums.
AARP has developed an
easy-to-use online tool that shows Part D enrollees if and when
they’ll hit the doughnut hole and suggests ways they can cut
drug expenses to postpone falling into the coverage gap or even avoid
it all together.
AARP Executive Vice President
Nancy LeaMond says, “We want to give Americans the tools they
need to cut their drug costs and stay out of the Doughnut Hole. We
encourage every person with Medicare Part D to take a few minutes to
find the right drugs at the lowest prices.”
The AARP Doughnut Hole
Calculator at www.aarp.org/doughnuthole
works like this:
- You enter your ZIP code, the name of your Medicare drug plan, and the names of the drugs you currently take.
- You will see a chart showing your likely drug costs under your plan for each month and, if you’ll hit the coverage gap, when it starts and how much it will cost you.
- For each drug, you can find out if alternative drugs are available through your plan that are equally effective, but cost less.
- The tool automatically recalculates the total cost of your drugs using the alternative drugs you’ve entered. You then can see how much you can save and whether you can avoid or delay falling into the doughnut hole by switching to less expensive medications.
- You then print out a letter to take to your doctor to discuss whether any of the drug options will work for you.
The tool is personalized to
your own circumstances—the specific drugs and dosages you take
and the Part D plan you’re enrolled in. But it is also
confidential. You don’t have to register to use it and none of
your information is kept once you leave the calculator.
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Added: Nov 20, 2009
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