Prescription Drug Coverage
By STELLA BURLESON Sentinel Guest Writer

During 2006, many hours of time and stress were spent on deciding in which prescription drug plan to enroll. We thought that would be all we needed to do in the future, but that is not true. Now that the option to enroll or change plans has arrived, you should compare plans that are available in your area before automatically signing on with the same plan as last year.

Many plans have dropped some coverage, added different options and increased payments dramatically. If you have not heard from your plan as to the charges for next year, you should contact them right away to find out if there has been an increase in payments or a change in coverage.

In order to evaluate your choices, you need to go to the Medicare website- Medicare. gov and enter information about the drugs you are now taking. Then you can choose three of the plans at a time to compare the costs and coverage. There are about 50 plans available in this area at this time, so the process becomes very complicated and confusing. If you are not literate in using a computer, you need to find a relative or friend who can help you. Free computers are available at the local libraries.