Medicare Part D Premium Will Rise Slightly Next Year, CMS Says
Also in Medicaid news: Missouri's upcoming vote on expansion and an interview with Will Lightbourne, head of California's Department of Health Care Services, which oversees the state’s Medicaid program.
Modern Healthcare:
Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Premiums To Rise Slightly In 2021
Seniors will pay slightly higher premiums for Medicare prescription drug plans in 2021, CMS said on Wednesday. The average basic Part D premium will be $30.50 next year, up from $30 in 2020. Premiums for Part D plans have fallen about 12% since 2017, which translates to $1.9 billion in premium savings, the agency said. (Livingston, 7/29)
Kaiser Health News:
Missourians To Vote On Medicaid Expansion As Crisis Leaves Millions Without Insurance
Haley Organ thought she had everything figured out. After graduating from a small private college just outside Boston, she earned her master’s degree, entered the workforce and eventually landed a corporate job here as a data analyst. Life seemed to be going as planned until the national retailer that Organ worked for announced furloughs during the coronavirus pandemic. After nine weeks of mandatory leave, the 35-year-old was laid off. The company gave her a severance package and put an expiration date on her health insurance plan. (Anthony, 7/30)
Kaiser Health News:
Medi-Cal Agency’s New Head Wants To Tackle Disparities And Racism
When Will Lightbourne looked at the statistics behind California’s coronavirus cases, the disparities were “blindingly clear”: Blacks and Latinos are dying at higher rates than most other Californians. As of Monday, Latinos account for 45.6% of coronavirus deaths in a state where they make up 38.9% of the population, according to data collected by the California Department of Public Health. Blacks account for 8.5% of the deaths but make up 6% of the population. (Young, 7/30)
