The Kaiser Family Foundation has released a report on the costs and consequences of the Medicare Part D coverage gap in 2007.
The coverage gap, also called the “doughnut hole,” is the period of time during the year when a beneficiary is not covered and is responsible for paying drug costs out of pocket.
The Kaiser study “quantifies…the number of Medicare Part D plan enrollees in 2007” who reached the doughnut hole. The study does not include low-income beneficiaries who received subsidies.
According to the study, one in four Part D enrollees reached the coverage gap last year. Kaiser extrapolated that 3.4 million beneficiaries reached the doughnut hole and faced paying the full cost of their prescription drugs. This resulted in some beneficiaries altering their use during the gap. For example, 15 percent stopped taking drugs for their conditions and 5 percent used different drugs.
Download the 38-page report (PDF).
