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April 18th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda TUESDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) — When Medicare stops paying
for seniors‘ medications after they enter the Part D “donut hole,” the
seniors often go without the drugs, even if the medications are essential
for heart health, new research shows.
“We looked at health outcomes within the coverage gap, which averaged
about three and half months during a year. While we didn’t find short-term
adverse cardiovascular events during that time, it’s really unclear what
this discontinuation would do in the long-term. And, we don’t know if they
restart the drugs at the beginning of the year when their coverage resets,
or if they remain off them,” said study author Jennifer Polinski, an
instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School and an instructor of
epidemiology at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.
Polinski’s study included more than 120,000 Medicare beneficiaries with
cardiovascular conditions who were receiving drug benefits in 2006 and
2007. During that time, those seniors who reached a total of $2,250 in
spending on prescription drugs in 2006 or $2,400 in 2007 lost further drug
coverage until they reached the amount required for catastrophic care
coverage ($3,600 in 2006 and $3,850 in 2007). This coverage gap is
commonly referred to as the Medicare Part D “donut hole.”
Most of these seniors had high blood pressure, and about one-third had
congestive heart failure.
For their research, Polinski’s team compared almost 4,000 of these
seniors who lost coverage and had no additional coverage to a matched
group of almost 4,000 seniors who lost coverage, but had additional
financial assistance (such as additional insurance) to help pay for drug
costs.
The group who had no additional financial assistance was 57 percent
more likely to stop taking the drugs altogether when they reached the
initial Medicare limit, according to the study. Neither group was likely
to switch medications.
During about four months of follow-up, the researchers didn’t find any
statistically significant differences in the rate of death or other health
outcomes. However, the authors note that it’s unclear how stopping heart,
cholesterol or blood pressure medications might affect long-term health
outcomes.
“I would urge seniors to talk to their pharmacist or doctor. Ask them
if there’s something cheaper you could be taking, and if you can’t afford
all of your medication, ask them to prioritize which drugs are the most
important for you to be on,” Polinski said.
Dr. Tara Narula, a cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York
City, agreed that anyone who’s having trouble paying for their medications
needs to talk to their doctor.
“Don’t hesitate to communicate freely with your doctor. Sometimes
people are scared or embarrassed to tell their doctor that they don’t have
the money. But, your doctor would much rather know that you can’t afford
the medication than for you to go without. There are ways we can help you
deal with it if we know,” she said.
Narula said it’s likely that if the researchers followed this group for
a longer time that they would have seen differences in health outcomes. “A
lot of these patients have a history of hypertension and heart failure.
Being off medications, even transiently, can have serious long-term
outcomes. And, in some cases, people who just stop for a few days or a
week end up with serious problems,” she noted.
Results of the study were published April 17 in the journal
Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.
Since the study began, changes in Medicare drug coverage have already
occurred. Under the new Affordable Health Care act, when people reach the
donut hole, new discounts kick in. Brand name drugs are currently
discounted 50 percent and generic drugs are discounted by 7 percent, and
the generic discount will be going up, according to Hilary Sohmer Dalin,
director of policy and programs for the National Center for Benefits
Outreach and Enrollment at the National Council on Aging, in Washington,
D.C.
While the Affordable Health Care act awaits a U.S. Supreme Court ruling
on its legality, it’s unclear what will happen to the new discounts.
Sohmer Dalin said it’s likely coverage would revert to the former Medicare
Part D plans if the Supreme Court throws out the whole law.
But, no matter what happens in the courts, she said, people who have
Part D and low incomes can apply for the Medicare Extra Help program,
which subsidizes medications and eliminates the coverage gap. For those
whose incomes are too high for the extra help program, Sohmer Dalin said
it’s “important to know what drugs you’re taking and to talk to your
health care provider to find the best drug regimen that works and is
affordable for you.”
More information
To find out where to get help paying for prescription drugs, or to see
if you qualify for the Medicare Extra Help program, visit the National Council on
Aging. This service is free.
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