WASHINGTON, April 28 (UPI) -- The Bush administration has guaranteed that Medicare prescription drug beneficiaries can continue to get the drugs they are already taking.
One of the most criticized parts of the plan was the ability of insurers to change their lists of covered drugs whenever they wished, while people on the plan could switch insurers only once a year. The rule change still allows the insurers to change their coverage, known as formularies, but requires them to keep providing coverage for anything already prescribed, The New York Times reported.
There are a few exceptions. Insurers can drop drugs that have been proven to be unsafe or when cheaper generic equivalents become available.
"In general, a plan cannot change your coverage for the drugs you are using during the year," said Dr. Mark McClellan, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. "The stability of drug formularies is extremely important for many of our beneficiaries."
