Government
Final Medicare drug rules unveiled
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 7, 2005
Federal officials released final rules last month that establish how Medicare drug plans will operate starting in 2006.
At press time, stakeholders were still sifting through the hundreds of pages of regulations to determine what changes the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services made to proposed rules, issued last August. Among the modifications are a provision to enroll Medicare-Medicaid dual eligibles in Medicare on an automatic basis this year and an enhanced financial assistance for low-income beneficiaries.
CMS kept the door open for drug plans to use many of the same cost-cutting tactics outlined in the proposed regulations. Insurers insist that measures such as tiered drug formularies, prior authorization and generic substitution are necessary to keep the program affordable. But many physicians worry that the limitations will be too restrictive for adequate patient care.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/02/07/gvbf0207.htm.
