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NEW YORK, Mar 12 (Reuters Health) - Medicare beneficiaries with prescription drug coverage used almost eight more prescriptions in 1998 than seniors without such coverage, up from a difference of five prescriptions in 1996, according to data published in the March/April issue of Health Affairs.
The statistics indicate that the gap between beneficiaries with and without drug coverage is widening, suggest John Poisal and Lauren Murray, of the Health Care Financing Administration's Office of Strategic Planning.
On average, Medicare beneficiaries without coverage filled 16.7 prescriptions in 1998, down 2.4% from 1997. Covered beneficiaries, meanwhile, purchased 24.4 prescriptions per person, an increase of 9% from 1997.
The study also shows growing spending differences between the haves and have-nots. Average spending on prescription drugs for noncovered beneficiaries were $453 lower than those for covered beneficiaries in 1998. The difference was just $330 in 1997.
Covered beneficiaries also paid a larger percent of their drug costs out-of-pocket in 1998 than in 1997. Those costs jumped almost 18%.
The disparities between those with and without coverage are particularly dramatic for people in poor health. Covered beneficiaries in poor health filled almost 15 more prescriptions, on average, and spent $910 more in total for drugs than their noncovered counterparts. That's up 30% from the difference between those with and without coverage in this category in 1997.
"This study offers clear evidence of the disparities in pharmaceutical coverage between Medicare beneficiaries who enjoy some form of coverage and those who do not," noted John Iglehart, editor of Health Affairs.
He added that the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey, on which the study is based, underscores why adding a drug benefit has become a key component of legislative proposals to modernize Medicare.
SOURCE: Health Affairs 2001;20:74-85.
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