An Informative Quiz on the Medicare Program

The Medicare program continues to confuse many people. Kaiser Family Foundation has posted a very informative quiz on the Medicare program. The quiz includes 10 multiple choice questions. The end of the quiz provides your score along with correct answers and explanations for those we get wrong. http://www.kff.org/medicare/index.cfm

The Medicare prescription drug provision is designed to phase out a gap in coverage for pharmaceuticals that was included in the Part D program when it was created under President George W. Bush.

In 2010, beneficiaries who hit the so-called doughnut hole in coverage received a $250 rebate check under a provision of the new law. In 2011, the law provided beneficiaries a 50 percent discount on covered brand name drugs and a 7 percent discount on generics when they hit the doughnut hole. That worked out to an average of $604 per beneficiary, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Women in particular benefited from the discount, saving $1.2 billion on prescription medications in 2011, according to administration data. The drug discounts are slated to rise to 75 percent for brand name and generic drugs by 2020, when the coverage gap will be eliminated altogether.