Obamacare and Prescription drugs in FL

[LukeFL]

Any information you can share what us happening in my state with senior prescription drugs prices? A friend if mine just complained in FB that her mothers drug cost her now 46 dollars when it was 100 percent covered before Obamacare.
Obviously everyone is Bashing the guy but I read sometime ago that in this state seniors would be screw because the governor of this messed up state didn't join the states in some sort of additional benefits?

I would like to know what's going on. My friend mi the is retired and very ill. She's been in and out if the hospital for the past few months and I believe she can't even walk.

I know friend is just ranting but I would really like to set her straight if she is, in fact, barking at the wrong tree.

Any input?

Thanks.

[mcar]

1. Why should her Medicare D be affected by the ACA?

Sounds like poutrage to me. The Medicare D plans change regularly and have since that terribly flawed program started.

FL is blocking Medicaid expansion so if your friend's mother is on Medicaid that might be the issue but that's on Scott and his TP legislature.

[LukeFL]

2. Why does Medicare D plan changes?

I thought once you retire you qualify Medicare and that's it- all will be included-

[shraby]

5. You get medicare and it pays 80%. Then you need a supplemental policy if you want that covers the

remaining 20%..that often has a deductible and co-pays..the bastards don't even want to really cover to 20%.
Then since you are old, often times you have medicines to pay for, so they devised the Part D which will cover a large chunk of drug costs which is nice especially if you have some that are very expensive and even if you don't. But if you don't get the coverage, you will be penalized the rest of your life for not getting it right away.
These plans are nice but for those on only social security, I really don't know how they manage. Every year the cost of Part D goes up as does the cost of supplemental ins.

[Downwinder]

3. It is January, she might have to make the

deductible.

[herding cats]

4. This may be of some help to you.

Recipients of Medicare not affected by ACA

Q: What is Medicare, and is it changing because of the Affordable Care Act?

A: It is important to note that people who have Medicare coverage are not affected by the Affordable Care Act. Medicare is not a part of the Affordable Care Act's Health Insurance Marketplace.

If you are a Medicare beneficiary, your Medicare benefits are not changing. You do not need to replace your Medicare coverage with marketplace coverage. For more information about the marketplace, visit www.HealthCare.gov.

Medicare is health insurance for people receiving Social Security who are 65 or older, or those who have received Social Security disability benefits for more than two years. Some people are covered only by one of the four parts of Medicare; others opt to pay extra for more coverage.

Understanding Medicare can save you money; here are the facts:

The four parts of Medicare are parts A, B, C and D.

.....

Part D (Medicare prescription drug coverage) helps cover the cost of prescription drugs. Many people pay a premium for Part D. However, people with low income and few resources may qualify for extra help from Social Security to pay the premium and deductible. To see if you qualify, visit www.ssa.gov/prescriptionhelp.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/business_columnist/social_security_and_you/article/Recipients-of-Medicare-not-affected-by-ACA-5112228.php

As you can see from reading the article, the ACA and Medicare are not related in anyway.