Part D was created in a manner that encourages competition between private companies. Each year, companies submit a bid to Medicare to let them know how much providing drug coverage will cost. The premium is determined based on a bidding process between Medicare and the companies. So, in many cases, it’s possible to find a much lower premium plan just by shopping around each year.

How much you’ll pay for each of your drugs depends on whether the drugs are on formulary, and whether you are before, in the middle of, or past the coverage gap, or so-called “donut hole.” The only way to see how much you’ll pay is to investigate each plan’s summary of benefits before signing up for that plan.

Many people like help deciding which plan is a good choice for them. Plans vary widely from company to company and from place to place, and when comparing plans between companies it’s important to compare the fine print—not just the premiums. That’s what Aon Hewitt Navigators Insurance Services Inc. (formerly known as Senior Educators Insurance Services) was created for—to provide free, professional assistance to Medicare recipients to help them choose appropriate coverage. To request help now, please fill out the short informational form here so a licensed agent can be well informed about your healthcare preferences. Or simply give us a call to speak with a licensed agent now!

If you prefer to do the research by yourself, we’ve created a number of tools to help you do so. First, we have created our Top 10 Tips for Navigating Medicare, which captures a very high-level perspective on what to consider based on our years of experience. Second, we have created a plan comparison engine that shows you a list of the plans available in your area. To access that tool, enter your zip code on the side of this page and click the “Find Plans” button. We hope that if you find a plan through our tools, you’ll enroll through our organization, as this is what allows us to provide excellent, professional and impartial information and help.