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Retiree Network News

Articles from the AFT Michigan Forum

Volume 65 No. 3, Fall 2005

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What Is Happening With Prescription Drugs
By John Olekszyk
Chair, MFTSRP Retiree Network

Scene: Its early Monday morning at a local McDonald's. A group of school retirees are sitting around their usual table, drinking their "senior" coffees and deciding if they are going to have their Egg McMuffin with or without cheese. The conversation eventually turns to doctors and drugs.

Roger: "Hey Pat, did you hear that us retirees 65 and over are going to loose our prescription drug plan under MPSERS?"

Pat: "No Roger, but I heard that MPSERS is putting retirees with Medicare into the new Federal Drug Plan and it's going to cost us a whole of more for drugs because of the monthly premium and the "donut hole".

Greg: "Speaking of donut hole, can we meet at Tim Horton's next week?"

Dave: "Hey, does that mean those youngsters under 65 will have better drug coverage than we do?"

Gary: "No, all of you guys are wrong but MPSERS and BC/BS will be giving us new membership cards with a new Federal identification number which will let the government monitor all of the drug usage by retirees."

Everyone: "I think I'll go with no cheese today!"

This scene and conversation is probably fictional but there are a lot of rumors and questions about the upcoming "changes" in the MPSERS Drug coverage benefits plan.

Representatives from the Office of Retirement Services and Blue Cross/Blue Shield reviewed the upcoming "changes" for retirees currently enrolled in Medicare at a September Workshop of the Retirement Coordinating Council (RCC).

The Medicare Modernization Act (MMA), which Congress passed in 2003, allows current pension systems to integrate their own benefit plans with MMA provisions. This integration will achieve significant cost savings to the MPSERS system.

An option adopted by the MPSERS Board this summer allows the MPSERS Board and BCBS to administer their own Medicare prescription drug benefits for all eligible members. The development of such an integrated Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) has the potential to save approximately $83-$85 million during the next calendar year with minimal impact on retirees.

BCBS representatives warned that retirees who sign up for Medicare prescription drug benefits Part D before 2006 would be unable to take advantage of the new integrated PDP if they are currently covered under MPSERS. They urged system members to MPSERS and BCBS will automatically enroll members in the new program beginning in November of 2005.

The opening statement of ORS and BCBS was that there would be little or no changes in the drug coverage benefit for retirees. The one change you will notice is the scheduled increase in minimum and maximum co-pay rates.

The other change is that everyone will be issued new membership cards that do not include your social security number. The card will contain a prescription plan number and a medical plan number. BC/BS indicated that all of their records, those at Merck and your neighborhood pharmacy will reflect your new drug number when the cards are issued.

In terms of your Medical coverage ID number, you will need to update your individual doctor's records when you have your next appointment or visit to the hospital or a medical clinic.

The savings accrued with the adoption of this plan will significantly reduce the pressure on the MPSERS health insurance costs and hopefully will help to undermine legislative efforts to "reform" our pension system with their proposed graded premium health care system.

Medicare retirees will be provided information on this new plan starting in October/November by ORS and BCBS. If you receive information from these two offices, please read it carefully.

Information that you might receive from insurance companies, drug companies or other such sources asking you to enroll in Medicare Part D should be disregarded.

Medicare retirees who are covered by a non-MPSERS drug plan through a spouse or other source will need to consider MPSERS coverage because of eligibility problems and additional costs if you enter the program after the current enrollment period.

In the highly unlikely event that Congress delays the implementation of Medicare Part D because of recent hurricane and on going military expenditures, the program will be pushed back until Part D is officially in place.

Retirees are reminded to look for BC/BS and ORS bulletins and mailings for the current status and information on the new plan.

Non-Medicare retirees will receive information prior to turning 65 and they will also be automatically enrolled in the program.