There are two responsibilities outlined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that you need to be aware of if you have a group health plan that offers prescription drug coverage:
1.) Providing certain employees with notices about their prescription drug status
- You will need to personalize and provide a Disclosure Notice to certain employees annually before October 15th, and prior to their new hire effective date. To simplify administration, many employers often decide to provide the notice to all plan participants and benefit-eligible new hires. You can read more about the notices required, all the instances in which you may need to provide the notice, and appropriate ways to deliver it.
2.) Reporting the status of your prescription drug coverage annually to CMS
- You will need to disclose to the CMS whether your prescription drug coverage is considered creditable or not. This should be done annually (within 60 days after the beginning of each plan year) via a short, online form. To report this to CMS, click here.
You’ll want to save a copy of the submission confirmation that you will receive. For more information on this process, Medicare Part D Disclosure Notice.
We recommend making a recurring calendar reminder to take care of these requirements annually. If you need help understanding whether your prescription drug coverage is considered creditable or not, don’t hesitate to contact us.