Happy Wednesday - Sharing an update from ACL.   

 

Ann Kayrish

Senior Program Manager for Medicare

National Council on Aging

251 18th Street South

Suite 500

Arlington, VA 22202

571-527-3945

 

 

 

From: SHIP Directors <xxxxxx@LIST.NIH.GOV> On Behalf Of Kinney, Rebecca (ACL)
Sent: Tuesday, October 29, 2019 9:33 PM
To: xxxxxx@LIST.NIH.GOV
Subject: MPF & OEP Update
Importance: High

 

This message originated from outside your organization.

Hello Everyone,

 

I am writing to provide another quick update on OEP and the new Medicare Plan Finder tool. Since Sunday night I have received several complaints about a new concerning issue with the costs showing on the new tool.  I shared those complaints with CMS right away and had a very good discussion with them this afternoon.  Here are the highlights: 

 

·         Plan Finder Update: As indicated above, we’ve heard multiple reports this week about concerns with how the monthly drug pricing breakdown displays for a portion of beneficiaries when they reach the catastrophic limit. I wanted to let you know that CMS is aware of this issue and they are actively working to put a solution in place as soon as possible.  Also, they assured me that their investigation showed that this issue began on Friday, October 25 and therefore didn’t impact activity or comparisons that you might have conducted before that date. We’ve agreed to continue to have regular conversations about Plan Finder throughout the rest of OEP.  I will continue to pass along updates to you as soon as I have them from CMS.

·         Feedback:

·         Please continue to send feedback via the online survey form. Although CMS isn’t able to respond directly to all of these, they are using your feedback to prioritize cross-cutting issues.  

·         You may use the xxxxxx@cms.hhs.gov mailbox to share screenshots of issues as they arise. This is not the preferred method of contact but is a good source to be able to share screenshots directly with CMS. 

·         Since ACL is no longer collecting the MPF issues (as we did in the past), Directors, please also share any major issues or trends you are seeing with ACL via the SHIP mailbox (xxxxxx@acl.hhs.gov).   

·         We will also ask CMS to join the next SHIP Director-only call again in November so we will have another opportunity for all of you to hear from them directly during OEP.

·         SHIP/SMP Unique ID Line: According to CMS, there have only been about 200 calls to the Unique ID line for help on Plan Finder this month.  This seems low, so I want to remind you again that if you are have an issue or question while working with a beneficiary, you can always call this special SHIP line at 888-647-6701.  Wait times at the regular toll-free line are still averaging less than 4 minutes since the start of Open Enrollment, but calling the SHIP line will get you to a representative even faster since you skip the main initial que. 

 

Thank you, as always, for all the work that you are doing.   ACL and CMS both really appreciate your feedback and will continue to do what we can to assist.  Please keep the info coming!

 

Best,

 

Rebecca

 

Rebecca M Kinney

Director, Office of Healthcare Information and Counseling

Administration for Community Living

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Office: (202) 795-7375

xxxxxx@acl.hhs.gov

 

 

 

 

To unsubscribe from the SHIP-DIRECTORS list, click the following link:
http://list.nih.gov/cgi-bin/wa.exe?SUBED1=SHIP-DIRECTORS&A=1

The information contained in this electronic mail and its attachments is privileged and confidential. It is intended for the use of the addressee and others specifically authorized to receive it. If you are not the intended recipient, you are prohibited from disseminating, distributing or copying this communication. If you have received this e-mail in error, please delete it and notify us by replying to this e-mail immediately.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this communication from the sender is confidential. It is intended solely for use by the recipient and others authorized to receive it. If you are not the recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosure, copying, distribution or taking action in relation of the contents of this information is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful.

This email has been scanned for viruses and malware, and may have been automatically archived by Mimecast Ltd, an innovator in Software as a Service (SaaS) for business. Providing a safer and more useful place for your human generated data. Specializing in; Security, archiving and compliance. To find out more Click Here.