title: The other yearly checkup: your Medicare drug plan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantify seniors' potential savings for switching to a new prescription drug plan (PDP) for 2011 and to assess predictors of which seniors could save most by reviewing their PDPs annually.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional analysis included 404 Medicare beneficiaries 65 years or older who selected PDPs at Senior PharmAssist (SPA), a pharmacist-led nonprofit in Durham, NC.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seniors had a mean potential savings of $348 for the year. The 62% of beneficiaries who could save by switching plans had a mean potential savings of $559. None of the factors examined predicted whether seniors would have potential savings. Among those with any potential savings, individuals taking more medications ( P = 0.003), people with no low-income subsidy ( P = 0.0002), and first-time consulters ( P = 0.03) had greater potential savings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Some seniors can realize substantial cost savings by changing PDPs annually. Pharmacists can help patients save money, reduce sources of nonadherence, and earn appreciation as professionals by alerting patients to these potential savings and referring them to help in selecting a plan.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Policy and Management, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hunt Kearsley
authors.forename: Gina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Upchurch
authors.forename: George M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.forename: Morris
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Weinberger
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017046:Cost Savings / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D006801:Humans; D054524:Medicare Part D / Q000191:economics*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States