You know those ads encouraging you to switch Medicare Part D prescription drug plans? Buyer beware: Signing up with one of these advertised companies could cancel your and/or your dependents’ CalPERS health benefits.
What Is Medicare Part D?
Medicare Part D is a voluntary federal outpatient prescription drug benefit available to everyone with Medicare. The Medicare Part D premium is paid to your health carrier as part of the CalPERS health premium.
Don’t Take Those Ads Up on Their Offers
Federal Medicare rules only allow enrollment into one Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage Plan at a time. This means you can’t be enrolled in a CalPERS Medicare health benefits plan and in a non-CalPERS Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage Plan at the same time.
If you and/or your dependents are covered by CalPERS and another health plan that includes Medicare Part D prescription drug benefits, you must cancel that Part D coverage to enroll in or continue enrollment in a CalPERS Medicare health benefits plan.
If you or your dependents who are enrolled in a Medicare plan sign up for a different Medicare Part D plan, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will disenroll you and/or your dependents from your CalPERS-sponsored Medicare Advantage Plan or Medicare Part D prescription drug plan.
That means all CalPERS health coverage will be canceled, and you’ll be responsible for your prescription drug costs. So, if you want to keep your CalPERS health plan, ignore those ads!
Do Contact CalPERS
Here’s the bottom line:
- Don’t sign up for any other Medicare Part D prescription plan — we’ve already got you covered.
- Do contact us with questions about your CalPERS health coverage — we’ll get you the answers you need. Call 888 CalPERS (or 888-225-7377) or send a secure message through your myCalPERS account.