The home page for Medicare.gov where the Plan Finder resides.
Screenshot
In 2019, an updated Medicare Plan Finder made its debut. Heralding its arrival, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said it would “provide a personalized experience through a mobile friendly and easy-to-read design that will help (beneficiaries) learn about different options and select coverage that best meets their health needs.”
However, the new Plan Finder was anything but friendly. It seemed as though the developers paid no attention to the Plan Finder’s predecessor. As a result, many valuable features were missing. The new tool did not identify preferred pharmacies, list the total costs (drug plus premium) for the year, include star ratings, or detail the costs (copayment or coinsurance per tier), to name a few.
And the most egregious omission in my book was not providing a way to save anonymous data, the drugs and pharmacies that are entered without logging into medicare.gov. Over time, CMS fixed many of the quirks but there is still no way to save data without an account. This can create problems for those not yet enrolled in Medicare, seniors who do not want or cannot set up an account, and others who need help but don’t want to give out their Medicare number to helpers. Not being able to save the information creates problems in a normal world but, in the midst of a government shutdown, it may create havoc as we work our way through this Open Enrollment Period.
Recent Problems with the Plan Finder
Last week, I encountered four major problems in one day. The client is enrolling in Medicare so, even if she wanted to, she cannot establish a medicare.gov account. The only way to find a drug plan is to do an anonymous search.
1. After entering her 10 medications and identifying plans to compare, I clicked on “plan details.” Suddenly the screen went black, with one word, “Loading,” which it was not doing. After a few minutes, I tried to close the window but that didn’t work so I had to quit the web browser.
Screen shot from Medicare.gov
Screen shot from Medicare.gov
2. I restarted the browser, went to the Plan Finder website and entered the ZIP code. An instant error message said, “ZIP code not found.” And, just as with the first problem, the system locked up and I had to quit. Only this time, after multiple attempts over 30 minutes, the same error message appeared so we restarted the office internet, which did not work either so I went to lunch.
Screen shot from Medicare.gov
Screen shot from Medicare.gov
3. The third time definitely was not the charm. I reentered her drugs and actually got to the plan details page. However, under pharmacies, it listed only mail order and that was out-of-network. Once again, no way out so I quit.
4. I started from scratch for the fourth time, only to discover there were no plans available in Alameda, CA. I know there are plans but the Plan Finder seemed to think otherwise.
At that point, I decided it was time to go home.
Impact of the Shutdown on Medicare
Health and Human Services says mission-critical activities will continue during the government shutdown. However, “Under a lapse, CMS would be largely unable to provide oversight to many of its major contractors, including the Medicare Administrative Contractors, the Medicare Call Center, and other IT contractors.” I suspect the “other IT contractors” may be key to the operation of the Plan Finder. Maybe the shutdown is having an impact or maybe these glitches were just coincidences. But whatever the reason, repeated attempts to find a drug plan would frustrate beneficiaries but getting a message they would need to change locations to find a plan could create anxiety.
What You Need to Know
- If you’re enrolled in Medicare, create a medicare.gov account. That way, your drugs and pharmacies are saved.
- Start early and figure out your situation. Maybe you’ll find there is no plan that covers one or your drugs. You need time to discuss alternatives with your physician. Then, you could wait until later in November to confirm your situation and enroll in a plan.
- As you work through the Medicare Plan Finder, grab screenshots or PDFs to have a record.
- Consider reenrolling through your medicare.gov account. Or, if you do not have one, enroll through the Plan Finder. Some plans have moved customer service offshore. And, as we get closer to December 7, phone lines heat up and you could be on-hold for some time.
I will never know why those four issues hit in one day but, since then, things have gone fairly smoothly. Hopefully, by the time you read this, the shutdown will be over but, if not, you know what to do. Just be sure to review your drug coverage.
