I have seen numerous alerts, blogs, and marketing emails disseminating about the Medicare Part D notice being “required” before October 15th.

While it is true, the rules require the notice to be provided to all Medicare Part D eligible individuals “prior to” October 15. Per the guidance “prior to” means the notice must have been provided within the last 12 months.

Therefore, if you have provided the notice during open enrollment with all your other required annual notices (which I recommend), assuming the plan’s status has not changed from creditable to non-creditable or vice-versa since open enrollment, there is NO NEED to provide the notice again for the October 15 requirement. The obligation has already been met!

TIPS:

👉 If the creditable coverage disclosure notice is provided to ALL plan participants annually (e.g., during open enrollment) the plan is relieved of the requirement to also distribute the notice to covered individuals who first become eligible for Medicare Part D coverage during the year.

👉 Employers may not have accurate information nor know which employees, spouses, dependents, COBRA participants, or retirees are enrolled in Part A or Part B, nor will they know which individuals are seeking to enroll in the employer’s plan. Therefore, providing the Notice to ALL individuals eligible for their Rx coverage is a best practice.

If you have questions about the above, or need help with another employee benefits administration question, please contact us! We would love to hear from you!

The Compliance Rundown is not a law firm and cannot dispense legal advice. Anything in this post or on this website is not and should not be construed as legal advice. If you need legal advice, please contact your legal counsel.