# How can a Medicare Part D provider charge a $0 monthly premium?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [January 29, 2024, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842 "2024-01-29T22:35:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![jharvey963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/54ee81/32.png) [@jharvey963](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharvey963)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/1 "2024-01-29T22:35:33Z")

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Last year, our Part D provider, Wellcare Value Script, charged $7.40 per month for our coverage. This year, our monthly premium is $0 - nothing.

How can this provider afford a $0 premium? I called their help number, but got no useful explanation from them. Do they get paid by Medicare for providing Part D insurance? Is there some other income stream they have?

Anyone know how they are able to afford this?

Thanks,  
J.

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/2 "2024-01-29T22:49:08Z")

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I have Wellcare also, and my premium plummeted so much (under a dollar a month) that I just paid the whole year at once.  
I think the government limited insulin prices and negotiated the prices of some very high price drugs, which helps Plan D. But everything I look at says Plan D premiums are supposed to be higher this year. Coverage hasn’t seemed to change - the first refill of the cheap generic I use was $0 co-pay.

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**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\
**Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/3 "2024-01-29T22:51:23Z")

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Yes, there is a massive subsidy by Medicare for Part D plans.

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/4 "2024-01-30T03:29:24Z")

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Yeah, but has it gotten significantly bigger? We’re talking about a decrease in payments, which is odd since I thought the negotiated drug prices hadn’t kicked in yet - and I don’t use any on that list anyhow.

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**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\
**Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/5 "2024-01-30T03:49:06Z")

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They can always manipulate their drug formulary–not covering certain drugs, putting drugs in a more expensive tier.

Did they change the situation concerning the donut hole this year [it’s supposed to go away eventually?]. If so that might have an effect.

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-can-a-medicare-part-d-provider-charge-a-0-monthly-premium/996842/6 "2024-01-30T19:34:25Z")

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> [@PastTense](#):
>
> They can always manipulate their drug formulary–not covering certain drugs, putting drugs in a more expensive tier.

What I read is that some drugs in the formulary are going to be cheaper, reducing what the insurance company has to pay. Just a few drugs can have a big impact. My lifetime supply of generic Warfarin probably costs less than a month’s work of some of the more advanced and expensive drugs.