The Brady Brief - Medicare "Donut Hole" Checks

Statement

Dear Friend,

This past week, Medicare began mailing out "donut hole" checks to tens of thousands of seniors. Under the recently enacted health insurance reform law, seniors who fall in the donut hole Medicare coverage gap will receive a tax-free $250 rebate check. These checks will continue to be mailed monthly as seniors enter this coverage gap.

Seniors fall in the donut hole coverage gap when they exceed the $2,830 prescription drug benefit limit, but do not incur enough cost to reach the catastrophic coverage threshold. Last year, 189,000 Medicare beneficiaries in Pennsylvania fell in the donut hole and received no help in covering the ever-increasing price of their prescription drugs.

Making seniors' prescription drugs more affordable is just one of the many benefits seniors will be receiving from the new health reform law. Other benefits for seniors include:
* A 50% discount on brand name drugs for seniors in the donut
hole, beginning January 2011
* Free preventative care services under Medicare
* Improvements to seniors' access to doctors
* Reductions in waste, fraud and abuse
* Expansion of home and community-based services to keep
seniors in their own homes
* Closure the donut hole completely by 2020

Eligible Medicare recipients do not have to do anything to get their $250 rebate check, it will be issued automatically. However, if you have questions or concerns about this rebate, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Robert Brady
Member of Congress

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