Updated Chartpack Details Supplemental and Prescription Drug Coverage Among Medicare Beneficiaries

The Kaiser Family Foundation has issued an updated chartpack presenting sources of supplemental and prescription drug coverage among Medicare beneficiaries in 2007, the most recent year for which national data are available. The majority of people on Medicare have some source of supplemental coverage that helps to pay Medicare’s cost-sharing requirements and for some services not covered by the program. Employer plans are the primary source of supplemental coverage; other sources include individually-purchased Medigap policies, Medicaid for those with low incomes, and Medicare Advantage plans. Since 2006, beneficiaries have also had access to a prescription drug benefit offered through Medicare Part D plans. The chartpack looks at variations in supplemental and prescription drug coverage by income, race/ethnicity, age, urban/rural location, and health status. It also examines characteristics of Medicare beneficiaries with low incomes who are not enrolled in a Part D plan or receiving Part D low-income subsidies. Prepared by Kaiser Family Foundation researchers, the chartpack is based on analysis of the 2007 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey. Link to Chartpack