Washington (dbTechno) - A study which has appeared this week in JAMA has criticized Medicare Part D, stating that its benefits fall short of doing what is needed to help patients. It is clear from the study that even though it is helping, it is not doing any good for the most seriously ill patients.
The study was led by Dr. Jeanne Madden and her colleagues at the Harvard Medical School.They analyzed data from annual Medicare surveys from 2004 to 2006.

What they found was that those who are seriously ill and require high-priced medications, are being forced to skip pills and reduce their prescriptions, all because they can’t afford them.

The most seriously ill people saw absolutely no improvement when Medicare Part D began.

The biggest problems for patients include the high co-payments as well as the costs required after the first $2,250 is used up.

Even with Medicare Part D, many are still without drug coverage.

The only benefit seen was for those who were not seriousy ill, as they saw improvements since Medicare Part D began.

The study has been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).