September 19, 2014
Group health plan sponsors must provide the annual Medicare Part D creditable coverage disclosure notices to Medicare- eligible individuals before Oct. 15, 2014—the start date of the annual enrollment period for Medicare Part D.
The creditable coverage disclosure notice alerts individuals as to whether their plan’s prescription drug coverage is at least as good as the Medicare Part D coverage (in other words, whether their prescription drug coverage is “creditable”). Medicare beneficiaries who are not covered by creditable prescription drug coverage and who choose not to enroll in Medicare Part D before the end of their initial enrollment period will likely pay higher premiums if they enroll in Medicare Part D at a later date.
Model Notices
CMS has provided two model notices for employers to use:
- A Model Creditable Coverage Disclosure Notice for when the health plan’s prescription drug coverage is creditable; and
- A Model Non-creditable Coverage Disclosure Notice for when the health plan’s prescription drug coverage is not creditable.
These model notices are also available in Spanish on the CMS website.
Employers are not required to use the model notices from CMS. However, if the model language is not used, a plan sponsor’s notices must include certain information, including a disclosure about whether the plan’s coverage is creditable and explanations of the meaning of creditable coverage and why creditable coverage is important.
Notice Recipients
The creditable coverage disclosure notice must be provided to Medicare Part D eligible individuals who are covered by, or who apply for, the health plan’s prescription drug coverage. An individual is eligible for Medicare Part D if he or she:
- Is entitled to Medicare Part A or is enrolled in Medicare Part B; and
- Lives in the service area of a Medicare Part D plan.
In general, an individual becomes entitled to Medicare Part A when he or she actually has Part A coverage, and not simply when he or she is first eligible.
Medicare Part D eligible individuals may include active employees, disabled employees, COBRA participants and retirees, as well as their covered spouses and dependents.
As a practical matter, group health plan sponsors often provide the creditable coverage disclosure notices to all plan participants.