Medicare plans must update materials to comply with new law

Medicare prescription drug plan sponsors must align their enrollment materials with the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act before the next subscription period, according to a notice from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released Tuesday.

The Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden passed last month, includes provisions to reduce prescription drug costs for Medicare recipients, such as limiting the cost-sharing of insulin to $35 and eliminating out-of-pocket vaccine costs under Part. D. year.

Health insurers must review the Medicare Advantage and Part D materials reflecting the new law before the upcoming open enrollment period, which begins October 15 and ends December 7. revised benefit summaries and updated their websites by October 15, CMS says in the memo.

CMS also advises insurance companies to check all beneficiary reports, not just those in the memo, to make sure they comply with the new law.

The memo states that if hard copies of materials cannot be updated before they are sent to members, insurers must send notices of corrections by November 15th. Insurers may combine updates into a consolidated mailing list. There is no need to re-submit documents already provided by CMS in the plans, and the agency will not take compliance action to enforce the changes outlined in the memo, the agency writes.