There is a lot of confusion among beneficiaries and Part D providers. A survey of more than 100 help desk operators at Part D providers found that many offered confusing information and were unaware that the new benefit covers syringes. In addition, the medicare.gov website does not provide information about newly covered supplies such as insulin syringes and pen needles.

The issue is crucial. "Diabetes is the single largest disease state for senior citizens and it leads to many other health complications. Drug compliance is central to diabetics' quality of health." Slightly more than a million of the 42 million Medicare beneficiaries have voluntarily signed up for the new prescription drug benefit, while 10.6 million had been enrolled automatically by the federal government or by health maintenance organizations. The Department of Health and Human Services expects between 28 million and 30 million beneficiaries to enroll by the end of 2006. The confusion about syringe coverage stems from the fact that diabetic supplies were not recognized as a separate therapeutic category during the formulary review that preceded Part D. Also, some Part D providers are excluding pharmacy name-brand syringes in lieu of national brands in order to realize financial rebates.

Source: Diabetes In Control