Medicare prescription drug coverage has 3 different phases of coverage — initial coverage, the coverage gap, and catastrophic coverage.
Initial Coverage
During initial coverage, your prescription drug coverage works like normal health insurance. Once you meet your deductible, you just pay copayments for your drugs based on what tier they fall under, and we pay the rest.
Talk to your doctor about generic drugs for extra savings, or look at ways to save on our plans.
The Coverage Gap
The coverage gap, also called the donut hole, is a temporary limit on what a plan will cover for drugs. It begins after you and your drug plan have spent a certain amount on covered drugs. Not everyone will enter the coverage gap.
What you must pay during this time is going down each year to help close the coverage gap.
Catastrophic Coverage
Catastrophic coverage makes sure you only pay a small coinsurance or copayment for drugs for the rest of the year after you leave the coverage gap.
If you get extra help, you won't enter the coverage gap.