Each year, group health plan sponsors are required to disclose, to individuals who are eligible for Medicare Part D and to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), whether or not their employer-sponsored health plan’s prescription drug coverage is creditable. Plan sponsors must provide the annual disclosure notice to Medicare-eligible individuals prior to the beginning of the annual enrollment period for Medicare Part D, which is October 15, 2018. Model disclosure notices for employers have been provided by CMS and links to the notices can be found within the attached article. This notice is important because Medicare beneficiaries who are not covered by creditable prescription drug coverage and do not enroll in Medicare Part D when first eligible, will likely pay higher Medicare premiums if they enroll at a later date. Although there are no specific penalties associated with failing to provide this notice, not providing it to employees may prove to be detrimental to them. The attached article defines what is considered creditable coverage and provides a plan of action for how to provide these notices in a timely fashion.
Contact your Cowden representative for more information on this or other compliance issues.