Medicare Part D Coverage Gap Discount Program Beginning in 2011

Correction: Changes in Drug Utilization during a Gap in Insurance Coverage: An Examination of the Medicare Part D Coverage Gap

BACKGROUND Nations are struggling to expand access to essential medications while curbing rising health and drug spending. While the US government's Medicare Part D drug insurance benefit expanded elderly citizens' access to drugs, it also includes a controversial period called the "coverage gap" during which beneficiaries are fully responsible for drug costs. We examined the impact of entering...

Medicare. Part D: Prescription drug coverage.

Part D coverage gap and adherence to diabetes medications.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the impact of Medicare Part D coverage gap (donut hole) on adherence to diabetes medications. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective cohort analysis based on pharmacy claims data. METHODS The sample included 12,881 Medicare Part D beneficiaries with diabetes who entered the coverage gap in 2008. Sample patients had 3 different levels of coverage in the donut hole: no coverage, gen...

Effects of Medicare Part D coverage gap on medication and medical treatment among elderly beneficiaries with depression.

CONTEXT Maintenance antidepressant pharmacotherapy in late life prevents recurrent episodes of major depression. The coverage gap in Medicare Part D could increase the likelihood of reducing appropriate use of antidepressants, thereby exposing older adults to an increased risk for relapse of depressive episodes. OBJECTIVES To determine whether (1) beneficiaries reduce antidepressant use in th...

Effect of the Medicare Part D coverage gap on medication use among patients with hypertension and hyperlipidemia.

BACKGROUND Prior studies of the Medicare Part D coverage gap are limited in generalizability and scope. OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of the coverage gap on drugs used for asymptomatic (antihypertensive and lipid-lowering drugs) and symptomatic (pain relievers, acid suppressants, and antidepressants) conditions in elderly patients with hypertension and hyperlipidemia. DESIGN Quasi-exper...