No Medicare Drug Premium Increases in 2012

CMS has announced that Medicare average prescription drug premiums (currently around $30) will not be increasing in 2012. Additionally, data is showing that more people are receiving free preventive services and many Medicare beneficiaries who hit the prescription drug "donut hole" are enjoying a 50 percent discount on their prescription drugs.

Details released by CMS include:

• Between January and July of 2011, 51.5 percent of people with Original Medicare received one or more free preventive services.
• During the same time period, more than one million Americans with Original Medicare took advantage of the Medicare's new Annual Wellness Visit (last year, the figure was just under 800,000)
• Almost 900,000 Americans with Medicare have benefited from the 50 percent discount on covered brand name drugs in the Medicare Part D donut hole in 2011 so far
• $461 million was saved on out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries through June 2011

Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, hailed these findings as proof that the Affordable Care Act (AKA the "healthcare law") is delivering on its promise of providing better health care for people on Medicare.

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