Stults Cheryl D, Baskin Alison S, Bundorf M Kate, Tai-Seale Ming
Palo Alto Medical Foundation Research Institute, Mountain View, CA, USA.
National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
J Patient Exp. 2018 Jun;5(2):147-152. doi: 10.1177/2374373517739413. Epub 2017 Nov 21.
Medicare beneficiaries often report that the process of choosing a prescription drug plan is frustrating and confusing and many do not enroll in the plan that covers their drugs at the lowest cost.
We conducted 4 focus groups to understand beneficiaries' experiences in selecting a drug plan to identify what resources and factors were most important to them. Participants were patients served by a multispecialty delivery system and were primarily affluent and Caucasian.
While low cost was essential to many, other characteristics like having the same plan as a partner, company reputation, convenience, and anticipation of possible future health problems were sometimes more important. Although some used resources including insurance brokers, counselors, and websites beyond Medicare.gov, many expressed a desire for greater assistance with and greater simplicity in the choice process.
Although older adults would likely benefit from greater assistance in choosing Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, more research is necessary to understand how to help with decision-making in this context.
医疗保险受益人常常表示，选择处方药计划的过程令人沮丧且困惑，许多人并未参保费用最低且涵盖其所需药品的计划。
我们开展了4个焦点小组讨论，以了解受益人在选择药品计划方面的经历，从而确定对他们来说最重要的资源和因素。参与者是由一个多专科医疗服务系统服务的患者，主要为富裕的白种人。
虽然低成本对许多人至关重要，但其他特征，如与伴侣选择相同的计划、公司声誉、便利性以及对未来可能出现的健康问题的预期，有时更为重要。尽管一些人利用了包括保险经纪人、顾问以及医疗保险官网（Medicare.gov）以外的网站等资源，但许多人表示希望在选择过程中能得到更多帮助，且过程能更简便。
尽管老年人可能会从在选择医疗保险D部分处方药计划时获得更多帮助中受益，但仍需要更多研究来了解如何在此背景下帮助他们进行决策。
