Contrary to the expectations of its early critics, the Medicare prescription drug benefit has been very successful at using market forces and consumer preferences to keep the cost of drug coverage down over the past decade. In a column at e21 I argue that, instead of bringing more government regulation to the drug benefit program, as the Obama administration is planning, the market-based model of the program should be used as a model for how to reform the rest of Medicare.
A new paper from Doug Holtz-Eakin and Robert Book of the American Action Forum documents the compelling record of the drug benefit. For starters, the primary objective of those who authored and pushed for the enactment of the program has been met, which is ensuring access to prescription drugs for America’s seniors. About 90 percent of the Medicare population is now enrolled in a drug plan of some sort. Most beneficiaries get their coverage through one of the private plans competing directly for enrollment within Medicare, but a sizeable portion of Medicare enrollees also get good coverage outside of Medicare through retiree benefit plans. The law facilitated the continuation of these plans.
And the beneficiaries like what they are getting. Surveys of beneficiaries since the program was implemented have consistently shown high consumer satisfaction with the drug benefit plans offered through the program. The most recent survey indicates that 92 percent of Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in a drug plan are satisfied with their coverage, with 58 percent indicating they are “very satisfied” with their current plan.
You can read the rest of the column here.