Pick Medicare drug plan by midnight or miss out

DETROIT — It's crunch time.

If you want Medicare prescription drug benefits and haven't enrolled, you have until midnight.

If you're eligible and you want the benefit, you can enroll by phone, on the Internet or by mail, but you must do it today.

For help, call Medicare at 800-633-4227 or visit www.medicare.gov. Or you can enroll or ask questions by calling the Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program at 800-803-7174.

Despite congressional pressure, Medicare officials say they will not extend the deadline for the voluntary prescription drug program. So if you have relatives who are eligible for Medicare, talk to them today to find out whether they've enrolled and help them make a decision if they haven't.

This is the first year that the federal health program for seniors and disabled Americans has offered a prescription drug benefit.

Here's what will happen if you miss the midnight deadline:

Those senior and disabled U.S. citizens who are eligible for the program now and don't have some other form of drug coverage will pay a monthly penalty if they wait and enroll in the future.

After midnight, the next opportunity to enroll will be Nov. 15 through Dec. 31 for benefits beginning Jan. 1, 2007.

When you do join, your premium cost will go up at least 1 percent per month for every month you waited. Like other insurance, you will have to pay this penalty as long as you have Medicare prescription drug coverage. Under current law, people who wait until December to enroll would have $2.31 per month added to their premium. That amount would rise each year to reflect the national average premium.

Dozens of private insurance companies are administering the Medicare prescription-drug program. To enroll, Medicare beneficiaries must choose the one that suits their medical needs.

The plans vary according to costs per month, the medicines they'll pay for, the patient's contribution for prescriptions and which pharmacies patients can use.

Because of the many variables, seniors have reported being frustrated and confused. But Medicare officials say counselors still can help people decide Monday which plans are best for them and get them enrolled.

Mary Johnson, executive director of the Michigan Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program, encouraged people to enroll, whether or not they use prescription medicines right now.

"It does help people," Johnson said. "You don't buy house insurance because you hope your house will burn down. This is the same thing."