Senior News Line: Part D drug plan costs going up

Many of us avoid talking about politics, but now and then an issue comes along that needs to grab our attention.

The one we need to be concerned about now is the Medicare Part D subsidy that will expire at the end of the year and won’t be offered in 2027.

It started as the Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration and was intended for those with stand-alone Part D drug plans.

The money — $3.6 billion this year alone — was given to the drug companies to protect consumers from price spikes in the premiums. It helped 25 million beneficiaries.

And now it’s going away.

What does it mean for us? Likely it means higher monthly premiums for our Part D drug plans.

The pundits who talk about these things think that our monthly drug plan premiums will only go up $10 per month. Others say it will be $20 per month, or maybe even lower than we’re paying now.

At this point they’re only guessing. Between now and the end of the year we need to learn how to study the various drug plans.

Become familiar with the Medicare drug plan comparison tool at medicare.gov/plan-compare.

And, as much as I hate to even contemplate it, we need to figure out how to shave even more from our monthly expenditures. One place to start is with the cost of our drugs.

Look for lower costs for your prescriptions at communitycaresrx.com, goodrx.com, singlecare.com and wellrx.com.

Learn how to navigate President Donald Trump’s drug website at trumprx.gov, although they don’t have all drugs listed yet.

Talk to the pharmacist where you get your prescriptions. Many pharmacies use a generic plan to save customers money — and the savings can be significant.

With a little preparation, we can be ready for whatever is coming.