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Enrollment for Medicare Part D Coverage Open Nov. 15 to Dec. 31, 2008

Plans Help Seniors Save In and Out of Prescription Drug Coverage Gap

November 13, 2008

OWINGS MILLS, MD (Thursday, November 13, 2008) - Starting Saturday, November 15, Medicare-eligible individuals can enroll in Blue Rx, the Medicare prescription drug program offered by Medi-CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield.

The program will provide members the opportunity to save money on prescription drugs and to help ensure they get the drugs they need. The enrollment period will end December 31, 2008.

The Kaiser Family Foundation (www.kff.org) estimates that 26 percent of seniors filling a prescription in 2007 reached the Medicare Part D coverage gap. In 2009, that gap will occur when Medicare enrollees incur $2,700 in total drug costs, at which point the individual becomes responsible for all additional drug costs until he or she pays a total of $4,350 in out-of-pocket costs for the year.

Medi-CareFirst offers two Medicare prescription drug products that can help seniors avoid -- or slow progress toward -- the potentially expensive coverage gap: Blue Rx Standard and Blue Rx Enhanced. Medi-CareFirst members enjoy:

• Discounted drug prices at all in-network locations. Medi-CareFirst has a network of 1,400 pharmacy locations throughout Maryland, the District of Columbia and Delaware, and 60,000 nationwide. That means the member prescription drug dollar goes further before the gap is reached. It also means that members get more for their money if they do reach the gap.
  
• Savings on their out-of-pocket expenses by purchasing a 90-day supply of their maintenance medications for the cost of a 60-day supply. For example, Blue Rx Enhanced members can purchase 34-day supplies of generic maintenance medications, in and out of the “coverage gap,” for a co-pay of only $9. A 90-day supply of the same prescription would cost $18.
• Free access to Medi-CareFirst’s Medication Therapy Management program. If you are a Medi-CareFirst member, this program provides access to specially trained pharmacists in your own community to personally assist you to improve health outcomes and reduce costs.

Eligible seniors can save even more by enrolling in the Maryland Senior Prescription Drug Assistance Program (MD SPDAP), a state program which provides premium subsidies and benefits when enrollees reach the Medicare Part D gap. Beginning in 2009, MD SPDAP will offer eligible Maryland Medicare beneficiaries up to $1,200 in subsidy toward the coverage gap. Medi-CareFirst will be one of the insurers in the service area that will be administering the new coverage gap subsidy for the state. The coverage gap subsidy is a new element of the Maryland SPDAP for 2009.

CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield (CareFirst) has pledged to contribute up to $4 million to fund the state program. Since 2000, CareFirst has contributed more than $118 million to support Maryland senior prescription drug programs.

Medicare Part D plans are commissioned by the federal government and administered by private insurers, such as Medi-CareFirst. Regardless of the insurer chosen, seniors benefit most by enrolling in a plan as early as possible. A late enrollment penalty of 1 percent per month of the “base beneficiary premium” is added to new members’ monthly premiums.

Seniors interested in prescription coverage through Medi-CareFirst are encouraged to call 1-888-784-0790, seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST [TTY/TDD 888-784-0868].

Medi-CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield is the trade name of First Care, Inc., which like its affiliate CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. CareFirst is a not-for-profit health care company which, through its affiliates and subsidiaries, offers a comprehensive portfolio of health insurance products and administrative services to more than 3.3 million individuals and groups in Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia and Maryland. Through its CareFirst Commitment initiative and other public mission activities, CareFirst supports efforts to increase the accessibility, affordability, safety and quality of health care throughout its market areas.