April 2015 Medicare Part D drug plan formulary updates are now online

The April 2015 Medicare Part D prescription drug data is now online and includes the addition of 360 national drug codes representing 216 different prescription medications, many with multiple strengths or delivery forms and impacts several hundred Medicare Part D prescription drug plan formularies. You will find these medications through our Formulary Browser (you can view all drugs for a single plan) and Drug Finder (you can view all plans for a single drug) tools.

Details of the April 2015 drug data changes are summarized in the May formulary drug additions blog with links to illustrate the variation in coverage details offered by all Medicare Part D plans in a particular state. A summary of changes to the Top 10 Medicare Drugs can also be found in our Monthly Formulary Changes Articles.

As you may notice in the May Top 10 Medicare Drugs trending chart, popular brand-name drugs such as Actos®, Diovan HCT®, Lexapro®, Lipitor®, Plavix®, and Seroquel® continue to see decreases in the number of Medicare Part D formularies that offer coverage for these brand-name drugs, while their generic equivalents continue to see increase formulary coverage. The April 2015 Medicare Part D formulary updates also included 22 new generic equivalents (manufacturer, drug, strength, and packaging combinations) that represent 9 generic medications.