Yesterday I picked out my new Part D plan and boy, it's a crapshoot. Last year I was paying 38 dollars a month and my medicine was unaffordable. That plan was going up to 42 dollars a month. I looked at five plans and ended up going with the cheapest per month as that was also the cheapest for my albuterol inhaler. But generally, it's cheaper to just buy the inhaler with Good RX.
I am so confused. The plans range from 4.60 to 70 dollars, and the medicines all seemed to cost the same. When I put in the advair generic that she wants me to take, the cost per year was up to 8000 on one of the plans. The cheapest was around 180 a month plus the premiums. I told the doctor when she prescribed it I didn't think I could afford it, and she said, Oh, it's fine, I checked, you're covered. Then when I went to pick it up, they wanted 450 dollars. So I gave up on that medicine as cannot afford it.
I know you have to have a plan to avoid the penalty being tacked on. So I signed up for the cheapest, the 4.60 plan. But I wonder what it will cover. You'd think the more expensive plan would cover more. But that was not really my experience last year.
What if you get sick and need medicines you don't know you need?
Finally, when I was in the hospital, I had to fill the pain med prescriptions there and we paid 24 dollars for both. But then on my billing, it shows up only that I paid 8 dollars for the one.
I am so confused. How in the world are you supposed to choose when you don't know what you will need? My husband's barber is on medicine for his arthritis that is 3500 dollars a month. I can't remember what they cover.