{"id":35975,"date":"2023-11-20T20:04:33","date_gmt":"2023-11-20T20:04:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/personal-finance\/retirement\/medicares-plan-finder-shows-i-could-save-709-for-prescription-drugs\/"},"modified":"2023-11-20T20:04:34","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T20:04:34","slug":"medicares-plan-finder-shows-i-could-save-709-for-prescription-drugs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=35975","title":{"rendered":"Medicare\u2019s Plan Finder Shows I Could Save $709 For Prescription Drugs"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Has the premium for your Medicare Part D prescription drug policy increased for 2024? Mine has. I recently received notice that my monthly premium would increase by more than 21%, from $28.40 in 2023 to $34.50 in 2024. This increase came on top of a large increase from 2022 to 2023.<\/p>\n

With increases occurring in back-to-back years, I decided to see if there was anything I could do to save money on my prescription drug plan.<\/p>\n

Examine your current plan\u2019s explanation of benefits<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The most recent premium notice prompted me to closely examine the explanation of benefits for my Part D coverage, a notice I receive each month but promptly file away without looking at it. As I reviewed it, I learned that during 2023, the drugs I take will cost me about $750 and that my plan would reimburse me next to nothing due to the deductibles in my plan.<\/p>\n

Rather than get mad, I decided to take the following advice: \u201cIf your premiums are increasing significantly, shop around to see if you can find another policy with a lower premium and cost.\u201d This advice comes from Diane Omdahl, author of Medicare for You: A Smart Person’s Guide<\/em>. Omdahl has also served as a technical expert for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the organization that runs the Medicare program.<\/p>\n

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Omdahl also recommended that I shop online for alternative Part D coverage using Medicare\u2019s helpful Plan Finder.<\/p>\n

Medicare\u2019s Plan Finder is easy to use<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To get the most from Medicare\u2019s Plan Finder website, I needed to create a login account and take a few minutes to enter my personal information, including the specific prescription drugs that I currently take and the local pharmacy that I typically use.<\/p>\n

I then instructed the Plan Finder to show me alternative prescription drug coverages for 2024. Within a few seconds, the Plan Finder had compared my current plan to 21 alternative plans with the following information:<\/p>\n