• Plan Name: This is the official Medicare Part D prescription drug plan name from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The same Medicare Part D plan name generally has a different Plan ID in each state (or CMS Region).
  
  
• Monthly Premium: This is the amount you must pay each month for this prescription drug plan. This monthly premium must be paid even if you are in the initial deductible phase or the coverage gap (donut hole) phase.
  
  
• Deductible: If your Part D plan has an initial deductible, you are 100% responsible for your drug costs until your expenses exceed this value and you begin your Initial Coverage Phase. Many Medicare Part D plans use the standard $400 deductible as provided by CMS in their Standard plan design. Some Part D plan providers offer an initial deductible lower than the Standard deductible. Many prescription drug plans do not have a deductible (also called first dollar coverage or a $0 deductible), however the monthly premium for a plan with a $0 deductible may be slightly higher.
  
  
• Gap Coverage: the Donut Hole: In the CMS Standard Plan, the beneficiary must pay the next $3,725 in drug costs (the Donut Hole). The Healthcare Reform provides that for Plan Year 2017, ALL formulary generics will have at least a 49% discount and ALL brand drugs will have at least a 60% discount in the coverage gap. The Gap Coverage Types discussed in this section are in addition to the Healthcare Reform mandated discounts. In our chart, you will see one of the following:
  • No Rx Cov.: This plan does not include prescription drug coverage. You are 100% responsible for your medication costs. If you would like to see ONLY those plans that do include some type of prescription coverage, please select ":Show only plans WITH Drug Coverage" in the "Prescription Drug Coverage" selector above (this is the default setting);
  • No Gap Coverage: you must pay the $3,725;
  • Yes: This plan offers some level of gap coverage. See plan details for a description of the gap coverage. It will read similar to: Under this plan you may pay even less for the brand and generic drugs on the formulary. Your cost varies by tier. You will need to use your formulary to locate your drug's tier. See the chart that follows to find out how much it will cost you.
  
  
• Drug Tier Information - Drug Tiers are the logical grouping of prescription drugs on a Part D plan formulary. These fields represent the Tier (or drug list group) - for this particular medication - on this particular plan’s Formulary or Drug List.
  • Tier Number - This is the actual numerical tier level from the formulary. Most Part D plans have four (4) tiers 1=Preferred Generics, 2=Preferred Brands, 3=Non-preferred Brands and Generics, 4=Specialty Drugs.
  • Tier Description - This is the Medicare Part D plan’s description of this particular drug tier.
  
  
• Cost Sharing - Copay / Coinsurance - These figures apply to the initial coverage phase of your plan. This is the phase after the initial deductible has been met and before you reach the Coverage Gap (Donut Hole). Plans often cover drugs in "tiers". Tiers are specific to the list of drugs covered by the plan. Plans may have several tiers, and the copay for a drug depends on the drug’s tier. The drug Tier is shown to the left of this column. These cost sharing figures DO NOT necessarily apply to the Coverage Gap. The plan may have a separate copay/coinsurance for the same drug while in the Coverage Gap. There are two figures shown under this "Cost Sharing" category:
  • Preferred Network Pharmacy - (Preferred Pharm) - This is the cost-share amount you would pay during the intial coverage phase for a 30-Day supply (until your total retail prescription drug costs reach $3700) at a "Preferred" network pharmacy. In most cases, the "Preferred" network and network pharmacy pricing are the same. However, for example on the 2017 Humana Walmart-Preferred Rx Plan the cost-sharing is much higher at a network pharmacy over a "Preferred" network pharmacy. "Preferred" network pharmacies for this plan include only Walmart, Sam’s Club and RightSource.
  • Mail Order - This is the cost-share amount you would pay during the initial coverage phase for a 90-Day supply if you purchased your medication through your plan’s preferred mail order partner(s).
  
  
• Drug Utilization Management or Coverage Rules - (Drug Usage Mgmt) - This shows the plan requires drug utilization management controls for this particular medication.
  • None - This drug does not fall under any drug utilization management controls.
  • P - Prior Authorization -This drug is subject to prior authorization.
  • S - Step Therapy -This drug is subject to step therapy.
  • Q - Quantity Limits -This drug is subject to quantity limits. The actual quantity limit is shown as Q:Amount/Days. For Example: Q:6/28Days means the quantity limit is a quantity of 6 pills per 28 days. Q:90/365Days would mean that the plan limits this drug to 90 pills for the entire year.
  
  
  
• Plan’s Avg. Retail Drug Price: This is the Medicare Part D prescription drug plan’s average negotiated retail drug price. This price is calculated for each plan by averaging the negotiated retail price for a particular drug across all pharmacies in the plan’s service area. For example. The negotiated retail drug price for Quetiapine Fumarate 25MG Tables on the AARP MedicareRx Saver Plus plan in Florida (S5921-356) is determined by averaging all of the AARP MedicareRx Saver Plus plan’s negotiated retail drug prices for a Florida pharmacies.

(Chart Source: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid files: CMS Data September 2017 )

Please note: The above plan information comes from CMS. We make every attempt to keep our information up-to-date with plan/premium changes. However, the Medicare Part D plan data changes over time and we cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information. You should always verify cost and coverage information with your Part D plan provider.