10/22/2007   Annual creditable coverage notices now available

Federal regulations require that Plan Sponsors who provide prescription drug coverage to Medicare-eligible individuals tell those individuals whether or not their prescription drug coverage is "creditable" or "non-creditable" for the purposes of Medicare Part D. The annual notification must be provided by Nov. 15 of each year.

Individual and Medicare supplement members
Regence, as the "Plan Sponsor" for Individual and Medicare supplement policies, will mail the annual notice to members by the end of October.

View samples of the Individual creditable coverage notice and non-creditable coverage notice. View sample of the Medicare supplement non-creditable coverage notice.

Group members
For Regence group policies, the employer is considered the "Plan Sponsor" and, therefore, is accountable to notify their Medicare-eligible individuals if their prescription drug coverage is "creditable." To support employers with this notification requirement, we have made available notices for creditable coverage and non-creditable coverage, which they can complete by filling in the highlighted areas on the notice and then distribute to Medicare-eligible individuals.

As an additional service, Regence can perform the mailing on behalf of the employer. The fee for this service is $1 per letter with a $200 set-up fee for each prescription drug plan. If your client would like us to perform the mailing on their behalf, please talk to your Regence Sales contact before Oct. 29.

Individual and group members also have the option to contact Customer Service regarding their status. They can also request a letter that reflects their creditable or non-creditable status.

For additional information regarding eligibility and notification requirements, visit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Web site.

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