Can Medicare Part D cause problems for someone who is being admitted to a nursing home?
Although people on Medicaid pay no deductible, Part D could cause problems for nursing home patients who are mentally impaired and have no one to speak for them. The nursing home can’t tell their patients whether to join a particular plan, so mentally impaired patients can be randomly assigned to a plan by the nursing home, if they don’t have a Health Care Agent or Power of Attorney to make the decision for them. Fact Sheet on Power of Attorney. If the Part D plan that is assigned to the patient does not cover a particular drug that the patient needs, there will be interruptions in the supply of the medication. Since nursing homes often use pharmacy suppliers such as Neighborcare that deliver in bulk, the nursing home might have to make special arrangements with different suppliers to obtain the medication that a patient needs. This is another example of how the advance planning that we prepare for clients protects them now and during times when they need care in the future. • Question
