Medicare Demonstration Project Runs July 6-September 30, 2004
The following letter comes from the American College of Rheumatology:
After July 6th, 2004, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin accepting applications from Medicare patients being treated for rheumatoid arthritis and other diseases to take part in the Medicare replacement demonstration project. This project is a prelude to the more comprehensive prescription drug benefit mandated by the Medicare Modernization Act, which is set to begin in 2006.
How the Project Will Work
- Applicants will be selected in a lottery process. There will be two lotteries.
- The project will also have two patient pools, one for beneficiaries with cancer diagnoses and another pool for all others. Selection will be made alternately between the two pools until the dollar limit is met in one; the remaining candidates will be selected from the other pool.
- The "early selection" lottery will accept applications until August 16th. Participants will begin receiving their benefits in September. Applicants not chosen in this lottery will automatically be entered into the second lottery.
- Patients applying for the program after August 16th and before September 30th will be entered into the second lottery. The ACR is encouraging you to assist your patients with their applications before August 16th. Patients chosen in the second lottery should start receiving their benefit in October.
- There is a patient application form required for all patients. This can also be completed by a proxy for the patient, in which case the proxy form must also be submitted. For low-income beneficiaries, there is an additional application. There is a provider certification form required for each applicant, to be completed by the provider. All forms and instructions are included in the application packet available on the ACR Web site.
- Please educate and assist your appropriate patients in applying for this program in time to meet the August 16th deadline for the first lottery.
For more information, visit the ACR Web site or visit CMS's information Web site at the links below:
The registration period will be from July 6th through September 30th. However, patients are encouraged to apply during the "early selection" process, which ends August 16th.