By Daniel Nardini

In my case, I am dependent on Medicare Part D for my prescription medications. Yes, there was an announcement to end part of Part D. The part that will be ended according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is the stabilization program officially called the Premium Stabilization Demonstration . This was implemented in 2024, and it will end at the end of 2026. The federal government had this in place to give insurers time to adapt to the new costs structure. However, Medicare Part D itself is not being brought to an end; only the Premium Stabilization Demonstration. Hence, for most medications and prescriptions the pricing will most likely remain the same. Because federal subsidies for Standalone Part plans is coming to an end, some Part D recipients might see a rise in prices in their premiums starting in 2027. However, Medicare Advantage Plans with integrated drug coverage will largely remain unaffected by this change.

For my personal health care plan, I will see no real rise in my insulin or my medications come 2027. But Part D itself as a whole is not being ended. Will all of this go as planned? I can only hope so. Like so many elderly Americans, I am dependent on Medicare, and changes within Medicare will affect me just like millions of other Americans. What is being ended are the subsidies for the insurers for the drug prices. This was supposed to have been a temporary program, and is now being phased out as the private medical insurers have prepared for this change. But Medicare Part D itself will remain. Amazingly, a lot of the news media has gotten this wrong. Some may wish to blame U.S. President Donald Trump and the Republican Party for something that will not happen. It seems that truth, especially specific information, is one of the first casualties in this hyper-political atmosphere of ours.