WASHINGTON, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Health-insurance giant Humana's "Complete" health plan was touted Thursday by Medicare beneficiaries and health analysts as a Medicare Part D-friendly plan, with a low deductible and an escape from the no-payment "doughnut hole" into which some befuddled beneficiaries are falling.
The mass confusion that accompanied the Jan. 1 debut of Medicare's Part D prescription-drug benefit has been blamed mostly on computer glitches that left many beneficiaries -- automatically switched from Medicaid to Medicare Part D -- without their medications.
But many seniors new to a government-sponsored drug benefit have reportedly been hesitant to sign up because they feel overwhelmed by the number of health plans offering a Medicare drug program.
Another complication is the so-called doughnut-hole feature of some health plans, where beneficiaries whose annual drug costs are more than about $2,400 but less than about $5,000 get no Medicare coverage for their drugs.
But among the seniors who have signed on to the Part D benefit, Humana's Complete plan seems to be emerging as a favorite, particularly among beneficiaries with one or more chronic -- and costly -- conditions.
A number of Medicare recipients touted the plan at a Washington news briefing held Thursday by the non-profit National Health Council, which did not list Humana as a member.
The group released a report showing that Medicare's drug benefit can result in average savings of $1,774 per year for people with four or more chronic conditions.
A market analyst who attended the briefing also told United Press International that, based on an upcoming survey of the various health plans, Humana's plan "seems like a good deal" for Medicare Part D beneficiaries.
Analysts at Decision Resources told UPI late last year that Humana would likely emerge as a major force in the Medicare market in 2006, largely due to the company's aggressive marketing tactics aimed at Medicare enrollees, including a partnership with Wal-Mart.
At the NHC press conference, Medicare beneficiary Mary Vinson -- whose chronic condition necessitates the use of 11 prescription drugs -- said she sidestepped the Part D doughnut hole by signing on to the Humana Complete plan and reduced her monthly payments for drugs from $700 per month to about $336 per month.
Vinson said that, while she is still "skeptical" of the new benefit, Part D has given her "peace of mind."
"I am no longer fearful that I'll deplete my family's life savings," she told the conference.
Another Humana Complete plan enrollee -- identified as "Betty" -- said her chronic rheumatoid arthritis has had a "huge" financial impact, one that became even more serious after she lost drug coverage upon sale of the family business.
"No one will give you coverage if you have a chronic disease," she told attendees of the briefing.
Facing a $20,000 yearly tab for RA therapy Enbrel and often getting by on over-the-counter painkillers, Betty said she was quick to sign up for Medicare's Part D drug benefit, noting that the Arthritis Foundation helped her navigate Medicare's Web site and choose a plan that fit her particular condition.
Betty said she cut her monthly $800 drug tab to a $250 deductible. She argued that seniors who have opted not to sign up for Part D because they take only one or two prescription drugs should rethink their position since their medication needs could change later.
"Look at (Medicare Part D) as insurance," she advised.
The NHC report also found:
Depending on the beneficiary's chronic condition, average savings from Part D range from about $1,000 per year for a condition like arthritis -- which carries an average yearly price tag of about $3,000 -- to $1,800 per year for Parkinson's disease, which costs a patient about $4,400 a year on average.
Medicare enrollees with one chronic condition can save about $400 per year on drug costs.
The probability of incurring catastrophically high drug costs increases dramatically with the number of chronic conditions.
Fewer than 3 percent of Medicare enrollees with no chronic conditions have annual drug costs totaling more than $5,100, while 10 percent of beneficiaries with two chronic conditions and 31 percent of beneficiaries with four or more chronic conditions have catastrophic drug costs.
Average savings for Medicare beneficiaries with catastrophic drug costs range from $3,300 to $4,300 depending on the number of chronic conditions they have.
"It is critically important for beneficiaries to carefully choose a plan that best meets their needs and make an informed decision," said NHC President Myrl Weinberg. She noted that about 85 percent of Medicare beneficiaries have at least one chronic condition.
The report was based on 2002 data from a survey conducted annually by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The research focused on seniors who can voluntarily sign up for Part D and not on those who were automatically switched into the program from Medicaid, said John Corea, senior manager, Center of Long Term Care at the Lewin Group, which did the research. The researchers used the "standard" health-plan model with a $250 deductible, he said.
