NEW: RI Seniors' Medicare Prescription Savings--Interactive Map

NEW: RI Seniors' Medicare Prescription Savings--Interactive Map

Nearly 14,000 Rhode Island seniors saved over $8 million dollars through prescription drug discounts in 2012, according to the latest data, and a new interactive map shows where those savings were logged, community by community.

See the map, below, to locate your community. 

Prior to the passage of the Affordable Care Act, thousands of Rhode Island seniors fell into the so-called Medicare “doughnut hole” and were forced to pay the full cost of their prescription drugs. In 2010, US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse successfully fought to eliminate the doughnut hole as part of the Affordable Care Act.

During a visit with Cranston seniors today to commemorate the three-year anniversary of the Act, Whitehouse and Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Roberts discussed how the health care law is saving money for Medicare recipients in Rhode Island. 

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The Doughnut Hole

The doughnut hole exposes seniors to the full cost of prescription drugs after they and their plan spend a certain amount of money ($2,970) for covered drugs in a year, but before they hit catastrophic coverage ($4,750). The Affordable Care Act closes the doughnut hole in phases over a ten-year period.

Because of the Affordable Care Act, in 2011 and 2012 seniors in the doughnut hole received a 50% discount from the drug manufacturers on all brand name drugs. Starting this year, the federal government will subsidize an additional 2.5% of brand-name drug costs for seniors in the doughnut hole. These subsidies will increase each year until the coverage gap is closed in 2020.

In 2012, Rhode Island seniors in the doughnut hole saved $579 each on average. See how your community's seniors did, below.