The entirety of Rhode Island’s federal Congressional delegation traveled to Riverside on Friday, Nov. 1 to discuss the upcoming savings available to senior citizens who rely on Medicare’s Part D supplement to acquire prescription medication, which will begin to take effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, as well as Representatives Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo joined Mayor Bob DaSilva, and Maria Cimini, Director of the Rhode Island Office of Healthy Aging, at the 610 Waterman Ave. location of PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) to highlight how seniors will be able to capture savings on prescription drugs at that time.

For reference, over 230,000 Rhode Islanders are currently enrolled in Medicare.

“We know well the challenges we face with pharmaceutical issues,” said Joan Kwiatkowski, CEO of PACE Organization of Rhode Island, which operates four facilities to assist senior citizens in Rhode Island, and moved into its East Providence headquarters in 2021. “Our participants are amazing and medically complex. They on average have six chronic conditions and take 11 medications...Our Part D regulations are different from most providers and health plans, but there’s one thing that we know — that they all know — and that is that prescription drug costs have gone up exponentially."

Kwiatkowski reported that PACE has seen a 50% increase in medication costs over the past five years alone. “That is despite using 88% generic drugs,” she continued.

But relief is coming on Jan. 1, 2025 following the passage of Biden/Harris Administration’s Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law in 2022 with all Democratic members of Congress voting in favor, and all Republican members voting in opposition or abstaining from voting.

As part of that voluminous bill, Medicare would be given the ability to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies to bring down the cost of certain prescription medications, starting with 10 drugs per year, and going up to 20 drugs per year by 2029.

“The first 10 drugs that have lower prices kicking in on Jan. 1 are some of the most commonly prescribed drugs on Medicare,” said Rep. Magaziner. “They are used to treat conditions like diabetes, arthritis, heart condition, kidney disease, and cancer.”

Magaziner mentioned the drug Eliquis, which is a blood thinner used to treat blood clots, would be reduced from an average monthly cost of $521 for those who rely on it, to $231 a month; a more than 50% decrease.

“The savings are real,” said Senator Whitehouse. “It’s only on a small number of drugs, but there are going to be more. We’re going to be expanding more and more drugs that get the benefit of negotiation…The worst we did with negotiation was to lower the cost by 38%. The best we did was lower the cost of the drug by 79%. That’s the range of the savings we’re getting from letting Medicare do something that is obvious.”

The Inflation Reduction Act also capped the out of pocket maximum for senior citizens at $2,000 for prescription medications, which is estimated to save $23 million for 68,000 senior citizens in Rhode Island.

“That’s about $330 per person,” Whitehouse said. “Which for Rhode Islanders on Medicare, you can think of some pretty good ways to spend $330 more than just sending it off to the pharmaceutical companies.”

Additional savings to seniors include getting the cost of insulin capped at $35 and providing free vaccinations, the former of which was important to East Providence senior citizen Christine Fernandes-Davis.

“It’s a total godsend,” she told the crowd. “I can tell you I have purchased insulin for myself for the last 20 years. I’ve spent thousands of dollars on it. I can’t even keep up with it to tell you what it is up to the present date. Right now, I went to the pharmacy and got my insulin monthly supply for $35. That’s huge.”

Shop around during Open Enrollment
Senior citizens were encouraged during the event to take advantage of Medicare’s open enrollment period, which runs through Dec. 7, to find the right Medicare plan for them that will provide the most savings.

“These (Medicare) changes happen every year and they can be complicated,” said Maria Cimini, Director of the Rhode Island Office of Healthy Aging. “At the Office of Healthy Aging we use our federal dollars to support what are called SHIP Counselors. They offer free, unbiased, personalized guidance for you as you try to figure out what the best Medicare plan for you is…It can be confusing, but there is help available.”

Cimini recommended calling the local help line to find a SHIP counselor, at 888-884-8721. Alternatively, there is the 24-7 Medicare hotline available at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).

Senator Whitehouse has also made his constituent series staff available to assist with Medicare issues at 401-453-5294.