Medicare Prescribes Additional Employer Responsibilities

Medicare continues to impose new obligations on school corporations - even those who don't provide health benefits to retirees. Are you aware of these new employer duties?

1. Update the Medicare Part D Creditable Coverage Notices.
2. Address responsibility for Medicare Secondary overpayments in your administrator agreements.
3. File the new paperwork needed to obtain the Medicare Part D - Retiree Subsidy.

Go here to learn more about these new responsibilities. Go here for Ice Miller's August 2005 School Corporation E-Update describing your school's Medicare Part D responsibilities.

Bonus Fact: New "Part D" coverage figures now available for 2007
The 2007 standard Part D coverage figures have been released. The deductible will increase to $265, the "donut hole" (the gap between what the participant pays and what Medicare pays) will increase from $2,400 to $3,850, and catastrophic coverage will begin at $5,451.25. The retiree subsidy cost threshold will be $265 and the cost limit will be $5,350. This may affect your plan design decisions and creditable coverage analysis.

Please contact your Ice Miller benefits attorney, Tara Schulstad Sciscoe, Chris Sears, Stephanie Smithey or Linda Rowings for more information on any of these issues.