Senior Citizens have recently gotten unwelcome news that premiums for Medicare prescription drug insurance plans will increase by double-digits rates next year. According to consulting and research firm Avalere Health the premiums for popular Medicare Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs) will rise by an average of eight percent and five of the top plans will increase their premiums from 16 to 26 percent. One of the causes of the premium increases is the rising cost of specialty drugs. Fewer big blockbuster drugs are going generic and there is an increase in the amount of specialty drugs being approved by the FDA. There have also been recent increases in the prices of some older drugs.
See Mark Miller, Unwelcome news about Medicare’s rising drug plan costs, Reuters, October 8, 2015.
Special thanks to Brian Cohan (Attorney at Law, Law Offices of Brian J. Cohan, P.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.
