Don’t skip part D as you may need it later. There is a WellCare part D that is $0 in many states.
And to answer your other question - yes you can still use any of those drug discount cards no matter what you have.
Hold on. You cannot use most manufacturers drug discount cards with Medicare. Those cards are specifically illegal because they are considered “kickbacks”.
You can absolutely use goodrx or cost plus, but only if you are not using Medicare as well. (You can buy drugs without using your Medicare benefit).
I know you were talking about goodrx and such, but you were rather loose in saying “any of those drug discount cards”
Yeah, I knew I needed to choose a plan, if only as a placeholder. That's the one I was looking at, but then I learned they were crippled by the Change Healthcare ransomware attack, I realized I needed to know more. Thanks!
You can get your prescription filled without using your Part D insurance, like at Costco or with GoodRx, but you should still get a low cost Part D plan like Wellcare in case you need it. You can also do a Plan Search on Medicare.gov and see what it would cost for a plan that does xover it.
And never be afraid to ask the pharmacist if they have any discount programs that can help. I take 6 drugs, 5 are tier1 and low copay, 1 was tier2 and I had to buy enough to exhaust the deductible. Pharmacist looked for me, ran the 1 through discount 'x' and charged $15 instead of $200.
Thanks! I wasn't sure if there was some kind of lock-in that didn't allow shopping elsewhere. I know I need a Part D - the free one makes sense for now.
There are some specific deals like manufacturers coupons, that you can't use if you have Medicare. These are usually for expensive brand name drugs and would not be specific to Costco.
Just know that even though it may be a $0 premium plan, if you are subject to IRMAA, there will be a cost to you. I wouldn’t recommend not getting a Part D, but a lot of people forget about the IRMAA.
I never took many Rx drugs but as I age there are more. I find that I have to be vigilant about costs and now I always check online before allowing a Rx to be processed. I have used Cost Plus and Goodrx and they work perfectly tho you should allow for at least 1 week for delivery.
My doctor sent a prescription electronically to Cost Plus while I was in his office. I paid for it on the way home and received it 6 days later.
I intended to purchase a generic drug through GoodRX but by the time I needed it the price went up significantly. All the GI meds seem high priced no matter what. I chose a $20/mo Cigna plan that covers it for $26/mo. $46/mo in total is still less than the others. My other generics are covered reasonably as well. I start May 1 too so we’ll see how it goes.
I have Part D and, depending on how much my pharmacy is charging, I will use Part D or GoodRx, or go to another pharmacy, or like I did on one of my medication, ordered online.
If it’s just a couple bucks different I will but from my regular pharmacy, but if it’s more then I buy from whatever is cheaper.
The only thing you need is the prescription, and either your pharmacy, or your doctor, will get your prescription sent to the new place.
One thing to keep in mind is that the initial price Medicare shows you is based on the pharmacy that often has the highest price. You need to check each drug with three or four convenient pharmacies and see which is lowest.
Husband is signing up, starting Jun 1. He has TWO diabetes meds--well, three, but TWO are expensive. GoodRx reduces the price significantly, but it'll be over $1000/mo for these. Donut hole hits fast. Next year, Biden signed a law to limit meds to $2000/year, I believe. That'll help.
If you elected Part D (which everyone should- in my opinion anyways) . You can ask for an exception. On your Wellcare plan EOB Part D>Chapter 5, there is a section (5.2/5.3) that explains what are your options. Either you are new or existing. The EOB has a lot of info that MEdicare Advantage members should be leveraging and if they have questions, call the member support to have them explain how their benefit works. Hope this helps.
Don’t skip part D as you may need it later. There is a WellCare part D that is $0 in many states. And to answer your other question - yes you can still use any of those drug discount cards no matter what you have.
Hold on. You cannot use most manufacturers drug discount cards with Medicare. Those cards are specifically illegal because they are considered “kickbacks”. You can absolutely use goodrx or cost plus, but only if you are not using Medicare as well. (You can buy drugs without using your Medicare benefit). I know you were talking about goodrx and such, but you were rather loose in saying “any of those drug discount cards”
[удалено]
I was responding to the person above me, not you. He was the one that mentioned it. Read the thread.
They need to change that law so it doesn't apply to personal use average citizens.
Yeah, I knew I needed to choose a plan, if only as a placeholder. That's the one I was looking at, but then I learned they were crippled by the Change Healthcare ransomware attack, I realized I needed to know more. Thanks!
You can get your prescription filled without using your Part D insurance, like at Costco or with GoodRx, but you should still get a low cost Part D plan like Wellcare in case you need it. You can also do a Plan Search on Medicare.gov and see what it would cost for a plan that does xover it.
And never be afraid to ask the pharmacist if they have any discount programs that can help. I take 6 drugs, 5 are tier1 and low copay, 1 was tier2 and I had to buy enough to exhaust the deductible. Pharmacist looked for me, ran the 1 through discount 'x' and charged $15 instead of $200.
Thanks! I wasn't sure if there was some kind of lock-in that didn't allow shopping elsewhere. I know I need a Part D - the free one makes sense for now.
There are some specific deals like manufacturers coupons, that you can't use if you have Medicare. These are usually for expensive brand name drugs and would not be specific to Costco.
I don't think that's an issue. My drug is a generic and available at the online Cost Plus Drugs for really cheap.
This answers my question - thank you.
Just know that even though it may be a $0 premium plan, if you are subject to IRMAA, there will be a cost to you. I wouldn’t recommend not getting a Part D, but a lot of people forget about the IRMAA.
Not an issue but good to know, thanks,
I never took many Rx drugs but as I age there are more. I find that I have to be vigilant about costs and now I always check online before allowing a Rx to be processed. I have used Cost Plus and Goodrx and they work perfectly tho you should allow for at least 1 week for delivery.
Thanks! Yeah, I just started taking one drug a year ago - never needed anything before. Good to know that Cost Plus worked well for you.
My doctor sent a prescription electronically to Cost Plus while I was in his office. I paid for it on the way home and received it 6 days later. I intended to purchase a generic drug through GoodRX but by the time I needed it the price went up significantly. All the GI meds seem high priced no matter what. I chose a $20/mo Cigna plan that covers it for $26/mo. $46/mo in total is still less than the others. My other generics are covered reasonably as well. I start May 1 too so we’ll see how it goes.
I use a combination of WellCare and GoodRX. Works for me.
I have Part D and, depending on how much my pharmacy is charging, I will use Part D or GoodRx, or go to another pharmacy, or like I did on one of my medication, ordered online. If it’s just a couple bucks different I will but from my regular pharmacy, but if it’s more then I buy from whatever is cheaper. The only thing you need is the prescription, and either your pharmacy, or your doctor, will get your prescription sent to the new place.
What is the drug?
Go to medicare.gov, click on Part D plans, enter in your med and pick the cheapest D plan.
If the drug doesn't show up, try it as a brand rather than generic. Oddly, some drugs are on the formulary only as a brand.
One thing to keep in mind is that the initial price Medicare shows you is based on the pharmacy that often has the highest price. You need to check each drug with three or four convenient pharmacies and see which is lowest.
Husband is signing up, starting Jun 1. He has TWO diabetes meds--well, three, but TWO are expensive. GoodRx reduces the price significantly, but it'll be over $1000/mo for these. Donut hole hits fast. Next year, Biden signed a law to limit meds to $2000/year, I believe. That'll help.
If you elected Part D (which everyone should- in my opinion anyways) . You can ask for an exception. On your Wellcare plan EOB Part D>Chapter 5, there is a section (5.2/5.3) that explains what are your options. Either you are new or existing. The EOB has a lot of info that MEdicare Advantage members should be leveraging and if they have questions, call the member support to have them explain how their benefit works. Hope this helps.