Ohio Steps in to Help Dual-Eligibles Navigate Medicare Part D

"We have heard reports that some pharmacists aren’t giving medication to dual-eligibles," Department of Insurance director Anne Womer Benjamin said in an interview. "There are still some problems with the database containing the dual-eligible information." People covered by both Medicare and Medicaid should have been automatically enrolled in the new program, she said. But pharmacists are frequently unable to confirm a patient’s eligibility on the computerized list and have sometimes refused to fill prescriptions. Letters defining eligibility have been sent out to dual-eligibles who may use the document in lieu of their prescription drug cards, she added. Ms. Womer Benjamin noted the problematic database is federal and not maintained by the state. She has been in frequent contact with the deputy director of the regional Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in Chicago to resolve the issue, she said. ODI’s Ohio Senior Health Insurance Information Program, the state’s lead agency for providing Medicare Part D information and enrollment assistance, has been partnering with the Department of Aging, the Department of Job and Family Services, federal and regional agencies to organize educational and enrollment fairs and other outreach events where staff and volunteers work with seniors to explain the new program and help them select from more than 40 plans available in Ohio