Medicare will offer a new program to cover your prescription drugs beginning January 1, 2006. Because of this new Federal program, the State of Maryland will discontinue its Senior Prescription Drug Program after December 31, 2005. However, the State of Maryland will pay a portion of Medicare drug-related expenses of both existing Senior Prescription Drug Program members and new applicants through a new program called the Senior Prescription Drug Assistance Program (SPDAP).

Beginning November 15, 2005, you will be able to select and enroll in a Medicare Part D plan. If you enroll by December 31, 2005, your new coverage will begin on January 1, 2006. Individuals enrolled in SPDAP will have a portion of their new monthly Medicare Rx premium subsidized by the State of Maryland

In Maryland, there are 21 Medicare-approved plans with 62 different prescription benefit plans and Medicare Advantage drug plans options from which to choose. They are all offered by private companies or non-profit organizations. These plans fall into one of three general types or categories:

• Standard Prescription Drug Plans (PDP's): These plans add prescription drug coverage to Original Medicare and provide initial benefit for drug costs up to approximately $2,250 a year. After you reach the initial coverage threshold of $2,250, you are responsible for 100% of your drug costs until you have paid $3,600 in out-of-pocket expenses (including the cost of copays and drugs that you pay for, but exluding premiums.) This is called the coverage gap. After the $3,600 in out-of-pocket expenses are paid by you, Medicare offers a catastrophic drug benefit that pays approximately 95% of your drug costs. 
• Enhanced Prescription Drug Plans: These plans are similar to standard PDP's, except enhanced plans provide more extensive benefits, such as paying for some or all drug costs in the coverage gap, lower copays, or including certain prescription drugs not required by Medicare to be covered.
• Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plans (MA-PD's): These plans offer drug coverage along with enhanced coverage costs for hospitals, doctors and other health services that are not paid for by original Medicare. To join a Medicare Advantage Plan, you must have Medicare Part A and Part B.

Although every plan provides a medicare-required standard of coverage, no two plans are alike. Some cost more. Some cost less. Some plans have very generous benefits, while others provide an inital annual benefit of around $2,250. Some plans cover the prescriptions you need, others may not cover them at all. Some plans use your favorite pharmacy. Others may not.

Which plan you choose depends on a number of factors, but basically they can be reduced to just three:

1. How much will you pay in out-of-pocket?
2. Are the drugs you need covered?
3. Can you use the pharmacy you want?

This website provides key information that you need to review to make an informed choice about which one to sign up for, including:

Practical how-to advice on how to choose a Medicare Rx plan; and
Summaries of all of the plans and benefit options from which you can choose. Reviewing these summaries should give you a good idea of whether a plan meets your needs and budget.

In order for the State of Maryland to help pay up to $25 per month toward your new Medicare Rx drug plan premium, you will need to enroll in a Medicare-approved Medicare Rx Prescription Drug Plan or a Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plan.

The Maryland Senior Prescription Drug Assistance Program is managed by the Maryland Health Insurance Plan Board of Directors. MHIP is an independent unit of the Maryland Insurance Administration.