Milestone moments in medicare's history

2011: Medicare beneficiaries with high incomes must start paying higher premiums for Part D in addition to Part B. 2018: All enrollees start to receive new Medicare cards; each includes a

unique 11-digit combination of numbers and letters rather than a Social Security number to help combat ID theft and Medicare fraud. All Medicare beneficiaries receive new cards between April

2018 and April 2019. 2019: Medicare Advantage plans can offer enrollees with chronic conditions additional medical-related benefits, such as transportation to doctor appointments and

over-the-counter medicines. In 2020, they are able to start paying for nonmedical benefits for people with chronic conditions, including meal delivery, home improvements such as wheelchair

ramps, and transportation to the grocery store. 2020: The Part D donut hole closes. When Part D prescription drug coverage was introduced, participants had to pay 100 percent of their drug

costs out of pocket after their annual spending reached a certain amount and before their expenses reached the catastrophic coverage level. This coverage gap gradually started shrinking in

2011. It closed by 2019 for brand-name drugs and in 2020 for generic drugs. Now Part D beneficiaries pay no more than 25 percent of the cost of their prescription drugs until they reach the

catastrophic coverage level, where they pay no more than 5 percent of their drug costs. 2022: On Aug. 16, President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act, which makes several major

enhancements to Medicare prescription drug coverage, including allowing Medicare to negotiate prices for some medications with drugmakers, penalizing pharmaceutical companies if they raise

their prices more than the rate of inflation, making certain vaccines free to enrollees, capping out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs and other major changes. The provisions take

effect over the next few years. 2023: Two key pieces of the Inflation Reduction Act take effect: Vaccines recommended for adults by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory

Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) are now free to Medicare beneficiaries, including the shingles vaccine. Copays for insulin covered by Part D plans are capped at $35 per month

starting on Jan. 1. The $35 copay cap for insulin taken through a pump, which is covered by Part B, takes effect on July 1. 2024: Three more pieces of the Inflation Reduction Act take

effect: The government will expand eligibility for the Extra Help program, which helps people with low incomes pay Part D premiums and out-of-pocket costs. Part D plan members whose drug

costs are so high that they enter the catastrophic phase of coverage will not have any more out-of-pocket costs for the rest of the year. Also, from 2024 through 2029, Part D plans will not

be able to increase their premiums by more than 6 percent per year. 2025: The maximum amount Part D or Medicare Advantage plan members will have to pay out of pocket for covered prescription

drugs will be capped at $2,000. Part D members will also be able to spread out cost-sharing payments throughout the year, so they aren’t hit with a big drug bill in one month. 2026: Part D 

price negotiations will start to take effect. Negotiated prices for up to 10 drugs will take effect in 2026. More drugs will be added to the negotiations process in subsequent years: up to

15 drugs in 2027 and 2028, and up to 20 drugs in 2029 and later. Price negotiations will take effect in 2028 for Medicare Part B drugs, which are usually administered in a hospital or

doctor’s office. _Melissa Stanton, a senior adviser and editor of the AARP Livable Communities initiative, contributed to this article. _