Choices can present opportunities, but the question is: What will seniors do when they face so many choices? ... Some will comparison shop, others might be heavily influenced by marketing and some may be paralyzed by so many choices. . . . Not everybody should sign up, because some people already have adequate coverage. |
It seems virtually all the 21 million have drug coverage now. It's unclear if the enrollment number represents a major improvement in coverage. |
It speaks to the importance of health and financial protections as an important part of retirement security. |
It will be important to get the full picture. We now know the number of organizations. From a consumer point of view, they may want to know the number of plans. |
It's really clear the drug benefit has attracted many, many businesses from throughout the country. What's less clear and really important is what they're offering and how seniors will respond to the opportunity to enroll. |
Retirees who cancel their employer coverage and take the new federal benefit may not be able to go back if they later realize they've made a mistake. |
Seniors are still divided as to being favorable or unfavorable, but many still don't know enough to have an opinion. |
striking that there are so many businesses that have stepped up to the plate and are apparently eager to enroll people in Medicare. |
That's a smaller share than many had feared. |
The benefit may not be as generous as some would want. But what's most important is having insurance coverage that will help you pay for medicine if you become ill and run up huge drug bills. |
The greater impact could be on low-income people. |
The idea is there are many people on Medicare that will need help in the coming year and will rely heavily on family members and others to step in and help them make important decisions. |
The numbers are moving in the right direction. But enrollment is lower and slower than projected. |
They have not yet reached their coverage goal, but they are clearly moving closer. |
They might want to think about this as insurance because their drug costs in a year might be higher than they are now. Just as when you buy insurance for fire, you don't want to see flames before you pay for the coverage. |