More than 10 million seniors have saved billions of dollars on prescription drugs since Obamacare was passed, the Obama administration announced Monday.
Last year, nearly 5.2 million seniors and people with disabilities received discounts of more than $5.4 billion, an average of $1,054 in savings per beneficiary. In total, nearly 10.7 million Medicare recipients have gotten discounts of more than $20.8 billion since Congress passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010.
“Millions are now able to access more affordable prescription medicine for their chronic conditions and millions more are staying healthier by accessing preventive services, especially vital for people living with disabilities or growing older,” said Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt.
A major feature of the healthcare law is that it aims to close what is known as Medicare’s “doughnut hole,” a point at which seniors had to start covering their prescription drugs costs, which many said was too expensive for those on a fixed income. To help cover costs for closing the donut hole, the law relied on cuts to Medicare Advantage, which frustrated many Republicans.
Average savings for Medicare recipients last year exceeded average savings in 2014, which totaled $941 per enrollee, CMS said. The discounts began in 2011, when recipients who hit the doughnut hole began receiving discounts on covered brand-name and generic drugs. This year, those in the doughnut hole will get 55 percent discounts on the cost of brand-name drugs and 42 percent discounts on the cost of generic drugs.
